The King's Singers

26 / 07 / 2010

David

It has been lovely over the weekend to perform some wonderful English Renaissance church music in our concerts in Weimar and Doberlug. Included in the programme were Tallis’s two settings of words from the Book of Lamentations of Jeremiah, both written later in his life during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Along with Spem in Alium, these two sets of Lamentations are considered to be amongst the greatest compositions by this long-lived and prolific composer. The Lamentations have long been a part of KS repertoire. They featured in the group’s debut concert in May 1968, and were recorded by the group in 1995 as part of a disc of music by Tallis and his pupil, William Byrd. I have performed them many, many times, but I always look forward to singing them. They were not written to be performed as a single piece, so we sang Byrd’s fabulous Civitas sancti tui (featured on 1605 Treason and Discord) in between, which, like the Lamentations, is an Old Testament lament for the downfall of Jerusalem. I love the variety of repertoire that the group sings, but I have to admit that I do have a particular soft-spot for early English music.

I am now back at home after an early flight home from Germany. I am looking forward to four relaxing days before the last concerts of the season. We still have a few miles to cover, which will take us from Kendal to Budleigh Salterton to Lahti to Warsaw and finally to Tewkesbury.

Below: 
Tim in Doberlug Klosterkirche surrounded by Deutschlandfunk microphones.