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The Carnal and the Crane (1998) |
For soprano and baritone soloists, chorus, strings, harp, timpani and organ (with optional brass) - c.8'
The origin of this carol is unclear, but is likely to have come to Britain and North America from France. One clue is the word carnal which seems to be a corruption of the French word for crow – ‘cornielle'. The carol takes the form of a fable in which the observer, passing by a riverside, hears the two birds arguing about the birth of Christ, the mystery and its meaning. In this version, the soprano soloist prepresents the crow, and the baritone, the crane, with the chorus as observers.
The Carnal & the Crane is the last work I composed in a series of Christmas carol arrangements for the orchestra and Chorus of St. Johns, Smith Square, London, between 1996 and 1998. It was performed, however, as the opening carol in a Christmas triptych (which originally included I Wonder as I Wander and Cantique de Noel ). The Carnal & the Crane was written in 1998 as a Christmas present to the Orchestra and Chorus of St Johns, Smith Square, London and their conductor, John Lubbock and chorusmaster, Jeremy Jackman.
Notes © Stephen Montague