Edward Nesbit (b 1986)
Nativity
The Choir of King’s College, London/Joseph Fort
Angharad Lyddon (mezzo-soprano); Benedict Nelson (baritone); Anneke Hodnett (harp); Martin Owen (horn)
rec. 2023/24, All Hallows’, Gospel Oak, London; Chapel of Merton College, Oxford, UK
Texts included
Delphian DCD34267 [73]
Since 2018 Edward Nesbit has been Lecturer in Composition at King’s College London. Joseph Fort and the Choir of King’s College, London have been promoting his choral music on disc; this is the second disc which they have released. The first album, also on Delphian, was warmly welcomed by my colleague, Gary Higginson in 2022 (review). I missed that release so I was keen to experience Nesbit’s music for myself.
The principal work recorded here is Nativity, which is scored for mezzo-soprano and baritone soloists, SATB choir, horn and harp. Nesbit has adopted a very original approach, not least in his selection of texts, which means that Nativity is far from being “just another” Christmas piece. There are two sources for the libretto. One is extracts from the Tilethatchers Play, one of the plays within the cycle of the medieval York Mystery Plays. The other is the poetry of the Welsh metaphysical poet, Henry Vaughan (1621-1695). The words from the Tilethatchers Play furnish the narrative element; in this the chorus and the two soloists are all involved with the soloists taking the roles of Mary and Joseph. The three Vaughan poems, which are sung by the chorus, function as commentaries/reflections.
I found much to admire in Nesbit’s score. The writing for the choir is consistently interesting – and very well put across by Joseph Fort’s accomplished choir. Arguably, the most impressive section out of the nine into which the score is divided is the concluding one, a setting of Henry Vaughan’s ‘Peace? and to all the world?’; here, the chorus has the main musical responsibility though there are interjections from the soloists. The movement grows in fervour, reaching a joyful conclusion. In singling out that section, which is also the longest, I don’t mean to imply that the preceding sections are less interesting; that is emphatically not the case, but the way Nesbit draws everything together and brings Nativity to a very satisfying conclusion is impressive.
I should also mention the use of the two instruments. Nesbit deploys both the harp and the horn to excellent effect; neither instrument plays all the time but when they are involved it is unfailingly to add important colour and/or melodic interest. For instance, the fourth movement (Lullaby 1: ‘Now in my soul great joy have I’) is a solo for the mezzo, as Mary. The vocal line of this tender contemplation is lovely and the instrumental parts – the harp as accompanist, the horn as the provider of a pleasing obligato – make telling contributions.
Nativity is a most attractive and imaginative score and I like the originality of Nesbit’s concept. All the performers give of their best and it’s hard to imagine that the work could have received a finer first recording.
At three points in the programme, we hear solo harp pieces played by Anneke Hodnett. These are the three movements of a work entitled Drop down ye heavens. It’s easy enough to programme your CD player so that you can hear the whole work complete and without any breaks but I think Delphian’s presentation works extremely well. Indeed, I was put in mind of the Interlude movement in Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols. Delphian’s presentation – in which I bet Josph Fort and, probably, the composer also had a hand – means that these three short harp solos fulfil a similar function. All three movements contain melodic material derived from the Advent Prose; I found this most easily discerned in the first movement, ‘Be not wroth very sore’, a slow, meditative piece. There’s greater strength in the writing during the second piece ‘We have sinned’, while the concluding ‘Comfort ye’ is swift and athletic. Anneke Hodnett displays great artistry in these solo items.
The rest of the programme consists of three sets of pieces for unaccompanied SATB choir.
Wycliffe Carols comprises seven pieces. The texts will be familiar and yet tantalisingly less than familiar to anyone who knows Handel’s Messiah. All the texts consist of words that Handel set in Part I of his great oratorio. However, instead of using the well-known English translation from the King James Version of the Bible, Edward Nesbit has turned to the earliest complete English translation, the Wycliffe Bible, which dates from the late fourteenth century. The listener’s interest is piqued by hearing words that are familiar yet unfamiliar and one’s interest is further stimulated by Nesbit’s musical responses. As an example, the second setting, ‘In plain ways’ (better known as ‘Ev’ry valley’) is set not to brisk, nimble music in the manner of Handel; rather, Nesbit’s music is slow, hushed and mysterious. ‘The shining of thy rising’ is another slow piece, this time with spare harmonies; again, there’s an air of mystery. ‘Forsooth, a little child’ is perhaps a bit closer to Handel’s ‘For unto us a child is born’ in that the music is lively and contrapuntal. Like Handel, Nesbit expresses joy. The last piece ‘Make joy withoutforth enough’ has come down to us through Handel’s exuberant soprano air, ‘Rejoice, greatly’. That air exists in two versions, my favourite being the one in compound time. Nesbit also uses compound time and his choral response to the text is fast and jubilant. As in Nativity, Edward Nesbit has displayed in Wycliffe Carols a refreshing and original approach to Christmas music, not least through his choice of texts. I enjoyed the pieces very much and I admired the accomplished way that the Choir of King’s College, London put them across.
Metaphysical Songs, composed in 2022, consists of two settings for SATB choir of Christmas poems by Henry Vaughan. The first, ’Awake, glad heart!’ surprises by the treatment of the first stanza (’Awake, glad heart! Get up and sing, / It is the birthday of thy King.’) One might expect such sentiments to call forth a musical outburst but Nesbit, ever subtle, sets this stanza to music that is slow, hushed and awestruck. It’s only in the following stanza that the music increases in fervour. Thereafter, as the poem unfolds the musical expression teems with ever-increasing energy, though the very end reverts to hushed music. The second song is ‘The Shepherds’. I think this is less successful. The poem is much longer than ’Awake, glad heart!’ and Nesbit crams an awful lot of words into a musical setting, underpinned by insistent rhythms, that lasts just 4:28. Almost inevitably there’s too much for the listener to assimilate.
Four Christmas Lyrics also dates from 2022. The collection comprises settings of three anonymous medieval texts, as well as ‘Balulalow’ from the sixteenth century. Again, these are for SATB choir and I like them very much. The second song, ‘Byhalde merveyles’ is lively and energetic; the music has a medieval feel to it. Nesbit’s take on ‘Balulalow’ verges on the austere – I don’t mean that in a pejorative sense – with bare harmonic language and an overall air of innocence. The concluding piece, ‘Abowt the fyld thei pyped full right’ is bright, joyful and full of energy.
I’m very glad that this disc came to me for review. Edwards Nesbit’s music is inventive, interesting and accessible; I enjoyed what I heard. More than that, in the works included here, all of which are receiving their premiere recordings, Nesbit displays an original and discerning approach to Christmas music. He is very well served by the performers. Joseph Fort has clearly prepared his choir assiduously for this assignment and they make an excellent impression. The voices are young and fresh, producing a very nice, clear sound. If I have one criticism it would be that the bass voices aren’t as firm as they might be; that’s not to say that the singers are not accomplished – that’s certainly not the case – but at this stage in their vocal development these basses seem to lack a bit of tonal weight. (The choir numbers 9/6/5/5, by the way). Overall, though, the choir does very well.
The performances have been very successfully recorded by Paul Baxter. Delphian’s documentation, which includes valuable notes by the composer, is excellent.
Readers should note that the CD release is limited to 350 copies. Once those have been sold, I understand that the recording will only be available in digital form.
John Quinn
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Contents
Nativity (2022)
Drop down ye heavens (2023) – 1. Be not wroth very sore
Wycliffe Carols (2021)
Drop down ye heavens – 2. We have sinned
Metaphysical Songs (2022)
Drop down ye heavens – 3. Comfort ye
Four Christmas Lyrics (2022)
