New record captures a musical year in the life of Portsmouth Cathedral
The 20 tracks include a nautical flavour and recognises the city’s role in the D Day landings
A year in the life of Portsmouth Cathedral and its choir has been captured in a new collection of music.
The recording takes listeners on a journey through the year from Advent to St Cecilia’s Day - the patron saint of music - on November 22. As befits our Cathedral of the Sea, as well as capturing music from the major Christian festivals there is a distinctively nautical flavour found in the annual Seafarers’ Service, the Royal Marines Band Memorial Service and the annual commemoration of D Day.
The sea-themed items also include an organ solo by Philip Moore, ‘Fanfare de Maris’, Grayston Ives’s setting of ‘They that go down to the sea in ships’ and the Christmas service has ‘I saw three ships’.
Portsmouth and its role in the D Day landings is marked with George Richford’s ‘Chanson de Normandie’ commissioned for the 80th anniversary of turning point of World War Two. The piece includes words from a Verlaine poem used as radio code to the resistance in northern France for the week and the day before the invasion.
With the choir directed by David Price, and with Sachin Gunga on organ, A Year at Portsmouth is available to pre-order now from Regent Records priced £14.50. It features 20 tracks and has a running time of 78 minutes. To order go to www.regent-records.co.uk