Songs of Farewell
Saturday 8th November, 2025 at 7:30pm
St Paul's Church, Winchester SO22 5AB
£18 (age 21 and under £10)
“There is an old belief
That on some solemn shore
Beyond the sphere of grief
Dear friends shall meet once more”
-- John Gibson Lockhart – Songs of Farewell No. 4
Programme:
| My soul, there is a country | Hubert Parry (1848-1914) |
| Introit & Kyrie (Requiem) | Ian Venables (1955-) |
| I know my soul hath power | Hubert Parry |
| How are the might fallen | Robert Ramsey (1590s-1644) |
| Never weather-beaten sail | Hubert Parry |
| Pie Jesu (Requiem) | Ian Venables |
| I will lift up mine eyes | David Briggs (1962-) |
| INTERVAL | |
| There is an old belief | Hubert Parry |
| When David heard | Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656) |
| Sanctus (Requiem) | Ian Venables |
| At the round earth's imagined corners | Hubert Parry |
| Lord let me know mine end | Hubert Parry |
| Holy is the true light | William Harris (1883-1973) |
| Lux aeterna (Requiem) | Ian Venables |
HOPE is at the heart this concert as we explore themes of death and grief, mixed with songs of farewell and finally the hope of a true and eternal light.
The earliest works this evening are considered two of the finest, sacred madrigals of the 17th-century: When David heard is the sublime masterpiece by Thomas Tomkins, capturing heart-felt grief of King David when he learns of his son’s death. The purity of message and the brilliant, economical setting of the text still pristine and perfect to this day.
Robert Ramsey How are the mighty fallen, moves our thoughts on from death itself to the lament of lost heroes with the repetition of the phrase “How are the mighty fallen” and concludes with a call for weapons of war to be destroyed…
Prior to the First World War, Hubert Parry had long been a fan of Germany and German culture. He was therefore deeply troubled by war with the Kaiser and the catastrophic loss of so many of his pupils in action. The Songs of Farewell (composed 1908-1918) focus this immense, personal grief on the setting of six texts from the British Isles that speak of the parting and passing-on of souls to another, purer land taking the listener, ultimately, through billowing, celestial clouds, to arrival in heaven with the simplicity of the closing setting of Psalm 39. The six songs are mixed throughout tonight's programme.
Contemplation of the final journey is the mood in two very fine choral anthems: I will lift up mine eyes offers an intensely beautiful and profoundly moving setting of Psalm 121: 1-4 by David Briggs. The ethereal setting of the text ‘I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills – from where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth’ will leave you spell-bound. William Harris Holy is the true light sets a powerful expression of faith, taken from the Salisbury Diurnal, ‘Holy is the true light and passing wonderful…’. As we draw to the conclusion of our journey, the music returns to the more familiar style of a solemn hymn bringing us neatly to a final and simple ‘Alleluia’.
The programme has five movements taken from a contemporary Requiem (2018) by Ian Venables, offering a perfect accompaniment to the Songs of Farewell and delivering a reverent and sacred passage through the evening. Chiefly known as a composer of songs, Venables brings a lyricism and colour to the requiem which is on par with Duruflé and Herbert Howells, not only in the choral writing, but also in the tremendous organ accompaniment. Composed of eight sections, we have chosen here, the Introit, Kyrie, Pie Jesu, Sanctus and the magnificent Lux aeterna ending the journey with “resplendent optimism”.
A note from the Musical Director
There is something very special, musically, about repertoire written with the theme of remembrance and solemnity at its heart, because it usually has aspects of contemplation and aspiration in its outlook. ‘Hope’ is therefore the theme of this concert, bringing together beautiful music that is appropriate to the time but with a positive future, a ‘lux aeterna’ if you will.
Composers through history have been very careful to maintain this sentiment in such works and the composers of the ‘great’ Requiems have certainly adhered to this. Naturally, this repertoire is often performed around Remembrance-tide and thus I had no hesitation in programming the masterful Songs of Farewell. Hubert Parry’s six anthems were first performed during the years of the First World War to great acclaim, the sentiment of ‘in memoriam’ (as was requested at the commission) suitably portrayed through the wonderful texts the composer chose.
But what to pair with, therefore? Well, once again, this choice was straight forward. Parry was no stranger to church and cathedral, having worked for some time at (alongside others) Gloucester Cathedral with S. S. Wesley. He also grew up in Gloucestershire and also rubbed shoulders with another great composer of the time, Herbert Howells, having a huge influence on the young composer at the time. Thus, Ian Venables’ setting of the Requiem immediately sprung to mind – first performed at Gloucester Cathedral and, stylistically, along the Howellsian compositional traits. In the same way that Parry was initially taken by the prospect of a memorial commission, Venables was immediately drawn to the text of the Requiem upon his commission. Both composers have thus composed their works with real interest, intrigue and intensity.
Musically, the Parry is challenging to perform all in one go, for both performer and listener; the same is true of the Venables. However, in order to make sense of their magnitude, they must be performed in order. Thus is so, but the programme will split these great works, interspersing with anthems that follow our theme of solemnity through to eternal light, a true expression of our concert’s theme, ‘Hope’.
Conductor: Jamal Sutton
