Cloudburst – Eric Whitacre
Vital writing for choral voices
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Eric Whitacre
Genre:
Vocal
Label: Hyperion
Magazine Review Date: 4/2006
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 71
Mastering:
Stereo
DDD
Catalogue Number: CDA67543

Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
i thank you God for most this amazing day |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
(I) Hide myself |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Sleep |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
(I) Will wade out |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Go, lovely rose |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
When David heard |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Hope, faith, life, love |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Cloudburst |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Betteridge, Piano Stephen Layton, Conductor |
This Marriage |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Water Night |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
With a lily in your hand |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
(A) Boy and a Girl |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Her sacred spirit soars |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Lux aurumque |
Eric Whitacre, Composer
Eric Whitacre, Composer Polyphony Stephen Layton, Conductor |
Author: bwitherden
Eric Whitacre, better known in his native USA, came relatively late to classical music; he was converted by Mozart’s Requiem at college, where he joined the choir to meet girls. He went on to study at Juilliard under Corigliano and David Diamond, during which time he wrote Go, lovely rose (1991). It’s now a repertoire staple for US choirs, and it’s easy to hear why: a setting of a 17th-century poem, it’s gentle, melodious and subtly coloured.
Since then he has focused on setting modern poetry, particularly that of e e cummings and Octavio Paz, although the longest piece here, When David heard (1999), uses a verse from the Book of Samuel. Sleep originally used Robert Frost’s poem Stopping by woods on a snowy evening but legal action by Frost’s estate forced Whitacre to abandon the text. Charles Anthony Silvestri composed a new text, a worthy substitute for Frost’s poem, to match the music, and it works well.
This beautifully performed and recorded CD contains the bulk of Whitacre’s choral canon and displays his delicate yet vital approach to writing for voices. I guess if you like Tavener (or Pärt, who is strongly evoked in David), you’ll enjoy Whitacre.
Since then he has focused on setting modern poetry, particularly that of e e cummings and Octavio Paz, although the longest piece here, When David heard (1999), uses a verse from the Book of Samuel. Sleep originally used Robert Frost’s poem Stopping by woods on a snowy evening but legal action by Frost’s estate forced Whitacre to abandon the text. Charles Anthony Silvestri composed a new text, a worthy substitute for Frost’s poem, to match the music, and it works well.
This beautifully performed and recorded CD contains the bulk of Whitacre’s choral canon and displays his delicate yet vital approach to writing for voices. I guess if you like Tavener (or Pärt, who is strongly evoked in David), you’ll enjoy Whitacre.
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