The Choir of Westminster Abbey is renowned worldwide as one of the finest choirs of its type. Comprising up to thirty boys (all of whom attend the Abbey’s unique Choir School) and twelve professional adult singers, known as Lay Vicars, its wide-ranging performing activities are rooted in centuries-old tradition and its repertoire ranges from plainsong and Tudor polyphony to twentieth-century masterpieces and new commissions. Charles Villiers Stanford’s eight-part Magnificat was posthumously dedicated to Hubert Parry, whose own Songs of farewell are unmistakably valedictory in mood. Personal as well as musical associations run deep in this poignantly expressive program from the Westminster Abbey Choir.
Choir of Westminster Abbey: Music of Parry, Stanford, Gray, Wood
