Herbert Howells Collegium

Regali Motet On The Death of President Kennedy

St. Paul's Service The Choir of Kings College, Cambridge

Directed by David Willcocks

Argo Records

1967

Stereo

ZRG 507

UK Release

Import

A historical recording of

Herbert Norman Howells CH CBE (17 October 1892 – 23 February 1983) was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican Church Music.

The English composer Herbert Howells is best known for his works written in the tradition of English choral music. His brief motet for unaccompanied mixed choir, Take Him, Earth, for Cherishing (1964), composed after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, is typical of Howells' mature style: tonal but modernist, lucid but atmospheric, deeply expressive but not specifically religious. The motet's profound sense of public loss combined with its exalted personal spirituality makes it one of the most affective works composed in honor of Kennedy and one of Howells' most immediately attractive works.

A short time after the assassination, Howells was given a commission to write a choral motet to be performed at a memorial service for Kennedy, which would be held at a later date at the Washington Cathedral. From that time until the following May, the motet did not have a title because the composer had not chosen a suitable text for this memorial work. Howells decided to use a Latin text that he had previously set in the sketches of Hymnus Paradisi (1938), the first piece that the composer worked on after the premature death of his young son, Michael, in 1935. The same sections of text were subsequently removed from the earlier work. Howells discovered the text, which was written by Prudentius, in Helen Waddell's English translation of Medieval Latin Lyrics.

Vinyl: NM

Fine copy of this historical pressing, very clean. No ticks pops or surface noise. Played only a few times on the University radio station locally. This is a mint, near mint copy. Spindle is in excellent condition overall.

Sleeve: VG+

Only slight wear on this sleeve corners are sharp. Seams intact, little to no wear even on the bottom seam. Front and back cover are glossy and there is no fading. No foxing, no moisture damage. Overall. A fantastic copy of this historical recording.  Bordering on NM

When shipped, this will be packaged in a corrugated cardboard container with padding, external poly conservation level sleeve and internal Conservation level sleeve. International buyers are welcome.