Major Choral Work

On Sunday, May 1, 2022, Plymouth's Chancel Choir will perform its Spring Major Choral Work.

On Sunday, May 1, the Plymouth Chancel Choir will bring the message through the power and beauty of music. The choir is venturing into new territory as it sings a major work from the jazz genre. Nidaros Jazz Mass, composed by Bob Chillcott, is an innovative setting of the Latin Missa brevis or short mass. The five-movement work draws on various jazz styles described by the composer as a gentle Kyrie, funky Gloria, ballad-like Sanctus, laid-back Benedictus, and a passionate Agnus Dei. 

Nidaros Jazz Mass was commissioned by Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, Norway. This cathedral is the most important Gothic monument in Norway and was Northern Europe's most important pilgrimage site for Christians during the Middle Ages. Its construction took place from 1070 onward. 

Bob Chillcott, a British choral composer, conductor, and singer, has become one of the world's most widely performed composers and arrangers of choral music. His compositions reflect his broad taste in music styles. Chillcott was a member of the King's Singers from 1985 to 1997, a chorister and choral scholar in the choir of King's College, Cambridge, and has served as conductor or guest conductor to major university choirs and the BBC Singers. In addition, his music has been widely recorded by many professional choirs and ensembles.