King's College Cambridge 2008 #14 In the Bleak Midwinter Harold Darke
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- Опубліковано 24 гру 2008
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spiritdei.blogspot.com King's College Cambridge In the Bleak Midwinter Harold Darke
I can't stop listening to this. Absolutely sublime. I always enjoyed Holst's arrangement, but this -- this speaks to my soul.
that tenor on the third stanza is absolutely amazing.
In my next life, I'd like to come back as a man. There is nothing in this world more beautiful and touching then men's voices. (and treble's) Especially this Tenor is so amazing!
What a wonderful, clear and unpretentious tenor they had that year. I hope he is doing well and pleasing many as he goes.
snow on snow... so peacefull.... sublime angelic voices.. wafting up throught the falling snow... would love to attend this service some Christmas Eve... this choir is in my opinion some of the finest singing ever... this arrangement the best... organ setttings… lovely. Harold Darke composer.
Darke's setting to these beautiful words by Christina Rossetti is most definitely my favourite. The choir sing this beautifully (brought a tear to my eye). Thanks for posting.
Magnificent in every way such talented choristers of the highest level
Perfect and sublime. Harold Darke at his best with those fabulous understated suspensions in the middle parts. And bravo to the lovely tenor - especially as he decresc'es followed by the full unaccompanied harmony of the last verse. Too beauiful for words.
@manthasagittarius1
Delighted to read this and other comments praising the tenor's performance. I taught him music in primary school and he was remarkable then too... :-)
Beautiful performance! My Parish choir are performing this this year (Christmas 2021) and I’m singing the tenor solo verse. I hope I can reach even half the level of the wonderful tenor in this video!
stunning - absolutely peaceful for christmas, breathtaking....angelic...
One of my very favorite Christmas carols, exquisitely performed. I got to see this beautiful church in Cambridge last year.
I can't believe such a gorgeous voice is coming out of that skinny kid (3rd verse) ! This is my favourite tune for this song
I'm not a Christian but I love this song.
Peace and respect!
I fervently agree! You don't have to be a believer to enjoy beautiful music. Regardless of the lyrics, anyone can enjoy beautiful music.
Breathtaking performance of the Darke anthem! Bravo and thanks from the States.
A nice song to listen to on a cold, snowy night with a nice hot cup of tea :) warms the soul.
I adore this version. I used to sing in a choir and this was the version we sang.
Absolutely breathtaking.
This is simply the paradise on earth!
This is one of my favorite Advent and Christmas Carols! It is a very meditative and prayerful tune.
Such a fine performance of this lovely, moving work. I shared it on Facebook yesterday, in honor of the poet/lyricist Christina Rossetti’s 180th birthday (!!).
Favorite carol of my dear old dad now departed. Harold Darke version of course
A very touching carol, beatifully sang!
So beautiful and yet so little reactions, strange! Love this. greets from Holland
I have to say. Though I am a girl, there is nothing more beautiful then a premature boys singing! *melts*
What a remarkable young man he is.
Just beautiful.
Great performance. I like the Harold Darke version so much more than the other one.
Beautiful is the only word for this. Congratulations to the choir!
nice one I love this music
im so exited, doing the treble solo at my carol choir concert in all saints church
Thanks so much for this one im singing it tomorrow and needed to practise
One of my favorite Christmas carols. Always gives me goosebumps. I like this version even better than that of Gustav Holst.
Tenor soloist outstanding!
Thank you for pointing this out. The transition from the tenor solo to the choir is magical.
The dynamics enhance the lyrics. Well done.
the counterparts that the organ...plays through this....is amazing....with just the right Chapel settings for tone....
Lovely......
Thanks I loved this.
Good to see Alex Stobbs singing in the back row.
Yay, Alex! I've been a fan of his since I saw him in the following DVD videos: "Carols From King's 2000" and "Matter Of Fact; The King's College Choristers". I hope he's doing well. I don't know anyone who has cystic fibrosis but I've heard of it. Terrible disease. Congratulations to Alex and his brother Patrick for all their achievements.
@spiritdei Thanks! Strangely I DO feel very proud, although I really had very little to do with his success - but he was always lovely, and always SOOO musical and with an amazing voice...(the last I heard was that he is into jazz singing!)...
Lovely
you guys set the standard of how music should be song
@pollr003 give it another listen....to the organ parts....and reconsider....I think the Chapel organ adds to the peaceful setting of this carol....Merry Christmas
Love the Darke version. I always used to prefer the Holst. I am sure Mr Darke is most relieved! Thank you for this.
Its not strange its the way they are taught... their practices are famously kept behind closed doors, and their levels of discipline are outstanding.
longeaton34, I don't recall hearing a tenor perform a decrescendo on his last note before this, but I thought it was very musically done. Thank you for pointing it out.
@zollykod Good work, you must be very proud!
@passatboi i sang this solo under 3 choir directors, and each one of them wanted i-ern. if you say iron out loud, it doesn't sound like i-ron.
I can't stand mispronunciations, overuse of slang, et cetera. A little bit of slang is okay but only a little bit. As for mispronunciations, I always hated them.
@Agoonatach The hymn that you love is Gustav Holst's composition of 1906. This one is the 1909 version by Harold Darke. Both are based on Christina Rossetti's poem written decades before. Each version has its fans. The Darke version is appreciated by cathedral choirs because it is arranged to offer soprano and tenor solos.
Merry Christmas to you!
Yes, I agree, both versions are beautiful. I prefer the Darke version.
Harke's version is more beautiful than the one of Holst. Especially, the tenor solo is very special!
I wonder why Cleobury never uses a treble soloist for this setting?
@mouslets5 I am no expert, of course, but I think Holst wrote the one I don't care for... Anyway, the one here is the one I like no matter who composed it! ;)
Holst's melody is awfully depressing. This one, the melody by Harold Darke, is in my Top Ten favorites and I read somewhere that it was Sir Stephen Cleobury's all-time favorite.
No boy choirs in the states...don't tell that to my brethren in Akron, Ohio or the fellows on Fifth Avenue, New York! I can think of a dozen Episcopal Churches were the tradition is still strong. Threatened yes, but still there.
Moss from the IT Crowd at 3:45
This version is light years better than the dirge to which this is normally performed. The other version should never be used as the “call waiting” tune for the Samaritans
It would be nice if you could hear some of the words, This is not Boris Ord or David willcocks' choir.
I loved it under David Willcocks as well. I collect CD recordings of the KCC from Sir David's and Sir Stephen's time. To my picky ears, Ord's and Ledger's styles were merely okay, not as exciting as that of Sir David and Sir Stephen.
G major. But not comparing to the Gustav Holst tune.
@passatboi ? It is "i ern" in English in the UK where the English language started we also say herb with an H not "erb" like Americans.
You are forgiven if you were actually saying that as a joke :-)
Love this. So glad it has cut out the religious nonsensical bleating of the vicar. Beautiful voices, beautiful songs....just the thing to listen to by the fireside.
So you want to replace the "religious nonsensical bleatings" of the vicar, but you don't mind hearing them in song form?
The beauty of the song is not determined by whatever story it tells any more than singing about a magic dragon for example. I like to hear the song but don't want to listen to someone who actually thinks it's true!
@@liberte1334 My sentiments exactly! I don't believe in the lyrics, but I love beautiful melodies and harmonies.
@@edmundburke3373 atheists don't pay attention to the lyrics, they enjoy the music. To atheists, the lyrics are just there.
Sorry, I should rephrase, 'its not strange'... I'm sure in many ways it is...and I didn't mean my comment to oppose yours in any way! :)
Final verse wins
As it doesn't seem possible any longer to reply to posts, regarding the comment by "passatboi" about "iron" and "iern", in English it is pronounced "iERN" and NOT "iRON" in a similar way that aluminium is pronounced "al you mini um" and NOT "al oo min um" That is the difference between English and American.
How can you pronounce ALUMINIUM AS AL OO MIN UN? What happens to the "I"?
That is what I was saying.
goodchappy Well, then, I'm not following your point. I thought you were suggesting (quite rightly) that some words are not pronounced literally according to their spelling, as in IERN over iRON. Because in that case ALUMINIUM is pronounced quite literally and therefore could not be a good example. But more importantly this performance was expectedly beautiful.
Olutoye Walrond The box of foil I have in my kitchen, here in the USA, actually spells it without that "I" you're asking about -- it's spelled "aluminum" .
And I love this performance, too. :o)
www.worldwidewords.org/articles/aluminium.htm ALUMINIUM !
Metathesized or syncopated from original IPA: /ˈaɪrən/. Reversing the pronunciation of I-ron to I-ern is just like changing "ask" to "aks" or "asterisk" to "asteriks". This may be acceptable in speech, but is not recommended in singing. The word Iron is on two notes: I - ron. With a nice flipped R. Not I - ern.
I can't stand mispronunciations. Aks, i-ern, and asteriks (to name just a few) get on my nerves. Between all the slang (and even worse, the mispronunciations) sometimes I think the English language is getting dumbed down. What a shame, because I FERVENTLY love traditional words. Fervent and mellifluous are my favorite words. The King's College Choir sings very MELLIFLUOUSLY.
Dear Batmanonsaleledgend.,
.
Are you really 47 years of age?
Cheers.
from,
del-boy.
I-ron not i-ern. Come on boys, diction!
I fervently agree, @passatboi!
Like if Joe Rogan sent you here
I wish they'd stop changing the tune - many of us like carols to be unchanging as that is part of their charm.
+FurryAminal This is THE tune in England -- voted one of the very best Christmas carols ever.
+Tinkaluisa I agree totally. This is the version I learned in choir forty years ago. The descant is completely amazing
+FurryAminal The Darke setting is over 100 years old, so I'm not sure it's really "changing" anything at this point.
Harold Darke penned this tune - he actually filled in the Post of Organist - Choir Director for this Chapel during the Great War. The version of this Carol here is considered to be the finest tune. To each his own - I suppose, considering there is an American, British and German version of Away In A Manager- all beautiful in their own right. I feel this simple tune here is one of the most haunting carols I have ever heard.
Speak for yourself; This tune is the one I'm most familiar with! Remember that your experience isn't _the_ experience.
TOO MUCH FLAPPING OF THE CONDUCTOR'S ROBE! RELAX, PAL & BE UNOBTRUSIVE!
Have some sensitivity, @sahcseco!!!!
I love Sir Stephen's conducting. I pay attention to his hand movements and facial expressions, NOT his robe flapping. He was delightful to watch, and I'm sooooooooooo sorry he died..
this is out of time and off pitch on more than one occasion. Massively disappointing I'd say...
Hope it goes well Singingjacobus!