Type of event: | Performance |
Venue: | The Parish Church of St. George, Castle St, Kendal LA9 7AS, United Kingdom |
See map below | |
Description: | Ralph Vaughan Williams Mass in G minor Frank Martin Messe pour double choeur The Mass in G minor is the first Mass written in a distinctly English manner since the sixteenth century. The composer dedicated the piece to Gustav Holst and the Whitsuntide Singers at Thaxted in north Essex, but it was first performed by the City of Birmingham Choir on 6 December 1922. The first four movements of the Mass for Double Choir were also completed in 1922, the Agnus Dei being added four years later, but Martin did not allow the work to be performed until 1963. After its premiere he explained why it had remained unseen and unheard for all those years: ‘I considered it to be a matter between God and myself,’ he wrote. ‘I felt that a personal expression of religious belief should remain secret and hidden from public opinion.’ (notes - John Bawden) |