Cohors Milicie by Caitlin Harrison
Performed by the Oxford Philharmonic, conducted by John Traill 

Composer's Note:
The concept of the work was inspired by J.S. Bach's 'Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott'. Instead of the pre-existing material by Martin Luther, I have used Hildegard von Bingen's 'O Cohors Milicie' (O Cohort of the Guard), part 33 of 'Symphonia armonie celestium revelationum' (Symphony of the harmony of heavenly revelations). The source work is harmonised with later quotations from the same chant, as in the Bach. Instead of each section being fugual however, my piece incorporates a mixture of canons and fughuettas. While the pitch and stresses of the line remain intact, the rhythmic patterns are mine. The chordal accompaniments represent the 'celestial choir', the harmony of which is built upon the intervals of a fifth and minor third, inverted from the opening two intervals of the chant. This, combined with the military style rhythmic polyphony, works to achieve an overall sonority more similar to a work such as 'Spem in Alium' by Tallis, rather than the clear counterpoint of Bach's 'Ein Feste Burg'.

Original Chant Text:
Psalm antiphon for the Apostles from 'Symphonia armonie celestium revelationum' part IV, Songs for the Celestial Choirs.

O cohors milicie
floris virge
non spinate,
tu sonus
orbis terre
circuiens regiones
insanorum sensuum
equlantium cum porcis,
quos expugnasti
per infusum adiutorem
ponentis radices
in tabernacula
pleni operis Verbi Patris.

O cohort of the guard
of the thornless branch's flower:
You are the sound
of all the world,
surrounding all the paces where
the senseless sensuous
are feasting with the swine
that you subdue
by the Comforter, the Aide poured out
of the Father's Word that plants the roots
that grow into the tabernacles of
his fulfilled work. 

Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)

Cohors Milicie (Oxford Philharmonic)

66. Christ Unser Herr Zum Jordan Kam for solo organ
by Caitlin Harrison
for The Orgelbüchlein Project
performed by William Whitehead

http://www.orgelbuechlein.co.uk/ 

   A scene is set as Christ approaches the river Jordan, a vision of anticipation cloaked in an ethereal aura. The dancing melody brings unease and excitement, uncertain of how the coming ritual will unfold. The original hymn tune, heard throughout in the pedal, sounds loud and mighty like the river, unmoved by those gathering at the banks. The scene then shifts as the Baptism begins — the grandiose river joins forces with the shimmering, etherial light at the top of the texture, portraying a scene of mighty divinity. The once uneasy melody continues to dance but with a more positive direction as the other lines literally surround it with a newly enlightened sound world. As the piece closes the different elements work their way down to a sense of calm, ending the Baptism and leaving onlookers with a sense of wonder and triumph. 
   The general abstraction of the work encourages the listener to build their own literal image of the Baptism whilst being influenced by the overriding themes of the Prelude. Whilst the initial inspiration is J.S. Bach’s setting of Christ Unser Herr Zum Jordan Kam from the Orgelbüchlein, inspiration was also taken from the Clavier-Überg setting (BWV 684), where the bombastic pedal tune dominates the consistently flowing upper lines. The dancing melody in the middle of the texture was achieved through putting the original hymn tune through a process that generated different vertical intervals from a retrograde of the original’s horizontal. This created an otherworldly character, perhaps less obvious than the ideas of water and divinity, yet one that conveys the underlying mysticism and wonder behind Christ’s Baptism.
- Caitlin Harrison (2021)

Image by Sebastiano Ricci

Christ Unser Herr Zum Jordan Kamm - The Orgelbüchlein Project

This short piece sets John Clare's (1793-1864) poem I am! which
documents his perception of his life once he had been taken to an
asylum by his family and friends, who wanted little to do with him. He
was one of the poets found in the search for the 'English Robert Burns'
yet, as an uneducated countryman, he found that he could not cope with the pressures of life in London where he was expected to be based as an artist. He retreated back to his home in the East Midlands only to find that the nature and land that inspired his poetry was being privatised by increasing acts of enclosure. He questioned his identity as a poet and naturalist to the point that he suffered a break down and was taken to an asylum. I am! is the poem that addresses this sense of identity most, as perceived by the author but also those around him.

Musically, the repetitive figure 'I am' that continues throughout
hammers away at Clare's question of identity, like a neurotic
confirmation that he still exists. Certain moments in the text are set in
less-popular ways, e.g. untroubling takes up three syllables as opposed to four, this is to accommodate the slight differences in dialect that would have been present in Clare's speech and writing; this helps maintain the flow and rhythm of the poem as conceived by Clare. This is a change I am comfortable writing in as I grew up very close to Clare's hometown of Helpston. The work is loosely modelled on Elisabeth Lutyens It is the Hour as part of my studies at the University of Oxford.

I Am! (BBC Singers)

From Dawn to Dreams
by Caitlin Harrison
Performed by Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra (dir. Andrew Taylor) and Reading Youth Orchestra (dir. Mel Le Breuilly)
This work was developed as part of the Adopt a Music Creator project, funded by the PRS Foundation and the Philip and Dorothy Green Music Trust, and run by Making Music, in partnership with Sound and Music.

From Dawn To Dreams - Mov.1 - The Grey Dawn

From Dawn To Dreams - Mov.2 - Rhododendron Bells

From Dawn To Dreams - Mov.3 - The Greenhouse

From Dawn To Dreams - Mov.4 - Night

by Caitlin Harrison

for violin and piano

commissioned and performed by Nate Sassoon and Marienn Sánchez

live performance recording from Monterrey, Mexico, 16th June 2024

The Wind Sings

Commissioned and performed by Dario Peluso and the London Euphonia Orchestra. Each movement of Pagan Scenes and Dances is named after the points of The Pagan Wheel of the Year. The wheel traces the change of seasons with ceremonial occasions to celebrate or reflect on the current environmental state. The most prominent themes are from darkness to light, along with tracing the fertility of spring to the summer and autumn harvests before the death of winter. The wheel is cyclical, with every year end, Samhain, going into Yule to start the pattern again.With this in mind, the piece could technically be performed starting at any movement, although most effective would be beginning with Yule, Beltane or Lughnasadh. Many of the pagan festivals correlate to modern ones such as Yule and Christmas, Imbolc and Candlemas, Ostara and Easter, and Samhain and Halloween.

0:38 I. Yule — Scene 
3:02 II. Imbolc — Dance
6:36 III. Ostara — Dance
8:44 IV. Beltane — Scene
11:10 V. Litha — Dance
14:02 VI. Lughnasadh (LOO-na-sa) — Scene
17:22 VII. Mabon — Dance
19:26 VIII. Samhain (SAH-win) — Scene

Pagan Dances

Written in memory of those who lived and suffered in the Łódź ghetto. 

Music - Caitlin Harrison
Text - 'Geto Getunya' written by Yankele Hershkowitz, collected by Gila Flam

Conductor - Jakub Kaczmarek
Accordion - Gabriel Balukiewicz
Cello - Ula Markowska

Choir - Maria Hubluk, Hania Jocek, Sylwia Teodorowska, Ela Ignaczek, Agnieszka Dobron, Anna Koziara, Caitlin Harrison, Damian Blonski, Mariusz Lewy, Kacper Janaszek, Rafal Wiecha and Piotrek Mika. 

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i--VvtVytkA

Geto - Concert Mix

'O Tu Illustrata' is the first of 'Three Motets on Texts by Hildegard von Bingen' by Caitlin Harrison, written in February 2020. 

The piece was scheduled to be premiered in May 2020 at The Queen's College Chapel, Oxford, but was unfortunately cancelled due to the pandemic. 

This recording is workshopped by members of Exeter College Chapel Choir, Oxford.

O Tu Illustrata - WORKSHOP

'The Flower' by Caitlin Harrison sets the first and final verses of George Herbert's poem of the same name. The piece is performed by the Ex Corde Vocal Ensemble as part of the NCEM Young Composers Competition final 2020 (upper category).

Caitlin Harrison

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