Gloria - John Rutter (b. 1945 |
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The English composer John Rutter has
become a veritable icon of contemporary choral music. His
association with Clare College, Cambridge, first as a student,
then as Director of Music, and later, as the organizer of the
much-recorded Cambridge Singers, has led to international
recognition.
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Gloria is one of Rutter's most ambitious concert works, and its premiere was the occasion for his first visit to the US, in May, 1974. The Voices of Mel Olson commissioned the work, and the composer conducted the performance by that chorale in its Omaha NE home. Rutter himself sees this work as analogous to a symphony, with three movements— allegro vivace, andante, vivace e ritmico--i.e., fast, slow, fast, in common with symphonic practice, and, says Rutter, " exalted, devotional and jubilant by turns". Gloria represents the second section of the Ordinary, the fixed-form portion of the Latin mass, i.e., the section following the Kyrie, and the introit, when the latter is used. | |||||
Many composers have set this text as an independent work. The practice of subdividing sections of the mass, such as the Gloria and the Credo, into separate movements dates from the time of Bach, who employed it in the B-Minor Mass, but it was popularized by early 18th-century composers. Rutter based his setting on one of many Gregorian chants which utilized this text. About the orchestration, he says, "The accompaniement (sic) is for brass ensemble with timpani, percussion and organ - a combination which in the outer movements makes quite a joyful noise unto the Lord, but which is used more softly and introspectively in the middle movement". | |||||
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