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Commotio (Oxford-based choir)

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki

Founded in 1999, the Oxford-based choir Commotio performs contemporary choral music primarily from the 20th and 21st centuries showcasing works by younger or lesser-known composers. The name Commotio derives from the Latin for movement/excitement.

History[edit]

Commotio was formed in August 1999 to promote neglected contemporary choral repertoire. Performances have included the second UK performance of Alfred Schnittke’s mighty Requiem and other rarely heard works including Paul Hindemith’s Mass and Kenneth Leighton’s Mass for Double Choir, and the world premiere of Pierre Villette’s Inviolata. Commotio also promotes and performs the works of a younger generation of composers including, most recently, Richard Allain, Jake Runestad, David Bednall, and Thomas Hyde.  

Their début CD of South African choral music was released in February 2006, followed by a CD for choir and cello in February 2008. A track from the latter disc, Richard Allain’s Ubi caritas, was chosen to feature on the Classic FM core playlist and appears in the compilation CD Smooth Classics – the Ultimate Collection. The choir recorded a disc of the music of James Whitbourn which was released on the Naxos label (8.572103) in February 2010. Their second Naxos CD, In the Heart of Things (8.572739), the choral works of Francis Pott, was released on the Naxos label in February 2012. In August 2013 Commotio featured as a gala choir at the Association of British Choral Directors’ Convention. Recent commissions include works by John Duggan, Richard Allain, Edward Cowie, and Francis Pott. In November 2013, the choir’s fifth CD The Rose in the Middle of Winter – Carols by Bob Chilcott was released in 2013.

Commotio’s latest recording, featuring jazz-inspired choral works by Bob Chilcott, was released in September 2017. On 4 December 2016, Commotio performed at the Parkinson’s UK Oxford Branch’s Christmas Concert and premiered, with Tom Poster and Clemmie Franks, a new carol by Bob Chilcott, The Angel Did Fly.

Matthew Berry, the conductor and joint-founder of the choir, studied music at University College, Oxford, where he was Organ Scholar and then Assistant Organist. He has studied organ under David Sanger, David Goode and Ian Curror. After conducting The Oxford Chamber Choir for two years as a student, he founded Commotio in 1999. Having finished his degree, he studied post-graduate choral direction with Patrick Russill for two years at the Royal Academy of Music in London. His expertise lies in the research and promotion of little-known contemporary choral repertoire, principally from Scandinavia, South Africa, the United States and Slovenia. In 17 years working with Commotio he has initiated many UK and World Premieres.

In February 2013, the Governing Body of the Royal Academy of Music elected Matthew as Associate of Royal Academy of Music (ARAM), an award to ‘former students who have made a significant contribution to the music profession’. 

Performances[edit]

World premières[edit]

Composer Work
Richard Allain In the Bleak Midwinter
Night *
There is no Rose
Bob Chilcott In a Golden World
The Angel did Fly
Ambrož Čopi[1] Ave Maria *
Edward Cowie Autumn (from Four Seasons) *
Winter (from Four Seasons)*
John Duggan As Kingfishers catch fire
As the rain*
Break, Phant'sie, from thy cave of cloud
De Brassica Est
Futility *
In memoriam (Easter 1915)*
The singing will never be done *
Anthem for doomed youth *
Martin Eastwood Ave Maria
See, the word is incarnate
Henry Howard Song for Lydia
Thomas Hyde[2] As a lily among thorns *
O nata lux
Sweet was the song
Peter Klatzow Two Songs from the /Xam
Stephen Montague Poor Baby Jesus*
Francis Pott As Joseph was a-walking
Balulalow
Lament
Mary's Carol
Mass for 8 voices*
There is no Rose
Pierre Villette Inviolata
James Whitbourn ADA
He carried me away with the spirit *
Mihyun Woo Voices of a Landscape *

Written for the choir *

European premières[edit]

Composer Work
Bob Chilcott Ophelia, Caliban and Miranda
Jaakko Mäntyjärvi O magnum mysterium
James Whitbourn Luminosity

UK premières[edit]

Composer Work
Ambrož Čopi O lux beáta Caélitum
Exaudi Domine
Omnes gentes, plaudite manibus
Frank Ferko Lord, let at last Thine angels come
Jon Mostad[3] The Lord is my shepherd
Sing to the Lord
Fredrik Sixten Mariahymn
Tantum ergo
Rudi Tas[4] Miserere

Other significant performances[edit]

Composer Work
Richard Allain Cradle Song
Charles Ives Psalm 90
Peter Dickinson Tiananmen 1989
The Dry Heart
Paul Hindemith Mass
Peter Klatzow Prayers and Dances of Praise from Africa
James Macmillan Seven Last Words from the Cross
Knut Nystedt Stabat Mater
Alfred Schnittke Requiem

Commercial recordings[edit]

Published Title Label Reference
2006 Towards the Light – Choral Works of Peter Klatzow Herald HAVPCD 316
2008 Night – Music for Choir and Cello Herald HAVPCD 340
2010 James Whitbourn – Luminosity Naxos 8.572103
2012 In the Heart of Things – Choral Music of Francis Pott Naxos 8.572739
2013 The Rose in the Middle of Winter – Bob Chilcott Naxos 8.573159
2017 All Good Things - Bob Chilcott Naxos 8.573383

References[edit]

External links[edit]


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