Cecilia McDowall

The charming and vibrant original melody of this attractive carol glides above harmonies that are almost entirely diatonic, but whose inventiveness and frequent passing dissonances mean that predictab...

Setting excerpts from the poem 'Wonder' by the metaphysical poet Thomas Traherne, The skies in their magnificence captures the poem's sense of majesty and expansiveness. Long phrases and expressive dy...

This work is destined to become a classic of the repertoire. The contrasting movements (I Power of Dreams- II Kirchner's Ear) are superbly written and result in a substantial and powerful work and a m...

Dieses Werk ist inspiriert von dem bewegenden, nocturneartigen Gedicht 'Der Nachbar' von Rainer Maria Rilke. Seine unheimliche, elegische Stimmung durchdringt die Dunkelheit. Es ist ein meditatives Du...

Meet-Cute is a light and playful celebration of the joy and thrill of falling in love. Setting a text by Charles Anthony Silvestri, the joy is embodied through swung rhythms, vocal scats, and sweet ha...

Songs of the North sets three texts from 'Poem of the North', a poetic collaboration celebrating 50 years of the Northern Poetry Library. As part of the project, poems were written with a new '821' fo...

Setting a fifteenth-century English text containing some short Latin passages, this is a joyful, dance-like carol with a medieval feel. Now may we singen was originally published in the New Horizons c...

A setting of one of the seven Advent 'O' Antiphons, O Oriens makes use of luxurious and exotic harmonies, creating a shimmering texture. The focus on human enlightenment in winter's darkness means the...

A setting of one of the seven Advent 'O' Antiphons, O Oriens makes use of luxurious and exotic harmonies, creating a shimmering texture. The focus on human enlightenment in winter's darkness means the...

This is the second and most intimate of the composer's 'Three Latin Motets'. Scored for upper voices, this gentle supplication to the Virgin is built on a plainchant opening, and contains expressive d...

Very moving and dramatic, Wilberg creates a beautiful harmonic language that complements this classic carol. Orchestral material is available on hire.

Composed for performance at degree ceremonies at the University of Portsmouth, this work captures the joy and excitement of such occasions, partly through the incorporation of a quote from Thomas Rave...

Composed for performance at degree ceremonies at the University of Portsmouth, this work captures the joy and excitement of such occasions, partly through the incorporation of a quote from Thomas Rave...

Originally written for SATB, this hymn to the 'Queen of the Heavens' is a glorious work, replete with dramatic changes of mood and texture. The majestic chords of the opening bars quickly give way to...

Cecilia McDowall's fresh and appealing style is amply displayed in this cycle, subtitled 'Three Shakespeare Songs'. In total, six Shakespeare texts are used, and McDowall's response encompasses a flee...

Commissioned by Ralph Woodward and the Fairhaven Singers in memory of Dora Kemp, one of the choir's sopranos, God is Light sets lines from Psalm 139, 1 Thessalonians, and 1 John. It moves from an unse...

This attractive motet was written for performance alongside Brahms's Requiem. The gracefully sculpted music clothes the text with touching melodies, expressive harmonies and varied sonorities.

McDowall's setting of Isaac Watts' Cradle Hymn is beautifully tender, coloured by its rich harmonies, suspensions, and chromatic notes. The melodies are complimented by sustained 'oo's and 'ah's and r...

Written in an a cappella style with scat accompaniment, A Tree is a Song is a joyful celebration of the affinity between trees and how wisdom can be passed on 'as a melody from tree to tree'. McDowall...

First performed by the choirs of St Paul's, Westminster Cathedral, and Westminster Abbey, this anthem sets a medieval English poem to contemplative music with all the hallmarks of McDowall's style: ex...

This expressive Wedding anthem sets an extract from William Blake's Auguries of Innocence. With chromatic inflections and gently arching vocal lines, the music perfectly reflects the text's emphasis o...

Setting a fifteenth-century English text containing some short Latin passages, this is a joyful, dance-like carol with a medieval feel. The spirited, lilting melody begins in the sopranos and altos bu...

Cecilia McDowall's fresh and appealing style is amply displayed in this cycle, subtitled 'Three Shakespeare Songs' and first performed by the BBC Singers. In total, six Shakespeare texts are used, and...

Setting part of a Eucharistic hymn text by Thomas Aquinas, this piece is suitable for liturgical or concert use. Flowing and expressive, it features homophonic sections, melismatic lines, and optional...