Cecilia McDowall

for SSAATTBB and organ This poignant anthem was originally composed to be sung at a funeral. It is a beautifully composed work, sufficiently sombre for such an occasion, but with a celebratory element...

for SSATB and organ This anthem commemorates the First World War. It sets a stark English text by Dr Joseph Spence which conveys the relentless hardship of life in the Trenches, alongside Latin words...

for SSATB and piano. This work sets three texts from 'Poem of the North', a collaboration celebrating 50 years of the Northern Poetry Library. The first movement is flowing and forward moving, while t...

Subject to the Weather uses the Welsh folk song The Blackbird as its inspiration, but also references Wesley's hymn tune Aurelia: The Church's one Foundation. The music evokes country life and birdson...

Written as the test piece for the CAVATINA Intercollegiate String Quartet Competition held at Trinity Laban Conservatoire, this short piece gives ensembles an opportunity to display their creativity b...

Sounding heaven and earth is an organ piece inspired by Prayer, a sonnet by the metaphysical poet, George Herbert.

Dieses Werk ist inspiriert von dem bewegenden, nocturneartigen Gedicht 'Der Nachbar' von Rainer Maria Rilke. Seine unheimliche, elegische Stimmung durchdringt die Dunkelheit. Es ist ein meditatives Du...

Taken from a suite of three pieces by Cecilia McDowall called Lonely Hearts, composed in 2005, this is a light and energetic setting of a whimsical text by Christie Dickason about a lonely hearts colu...

This gentle arrangement for a cappella choir of the well-known fifteenth-century carol conjures a restful but evocatively melancholy atmosphere. The texture is varied by the use of a soprano or barito...

Songs of the North sets three texts from 'Poem of the North', a poetic collaboration celebrating 50 years of the Northern Poetry Library. As part of the project, poems were written with a new '821' fo...

Sounding heaven and earth is an organ piece inspired by Prayer, a sonnet by the metaphysical poet, George Herbert.

Jackson's work couples the expressive language of a medieval Latin hymn with the Collect for St Margaret of Scotland. The use of hockets and isorhythms give the music a deep medieval grounding, whilst...

The Ballerina and the Clown develops a completely new story inspired by some of Hans Christian Andersen's charming papercuts, which are reproduced in the score. Alternative illustrations by Cecilia Ro...

This is the second and most intimate of the composer's 'Three Latin Motets'. Scored for upper voices, this gentle supplication to the Virgin is built on a plainchant opening, and contains expressive d...

Very moving and dramatic, Wilberg creates a beautiful harmonic language that complements this classic carol. Orchestral material is available on hire.

Composed for performance at degree ceremonies at the University of Portsmouth, this work captures the joy and excitement of such occasions, partly through the incorporation of a quote from Thomas Rave...

Composed for performance at degree ceremonies at the University of Portsmouth, this work captures the joy and excitement of such occasions, partly through the incorporation of a quote from Thomas Rave...

Originally written for SATB, this hymn to the 'Queen of the Heavens' is a glorious work, replete with dramatic changes of mood and texture. The majestic chords of the opening bars quickly give way to...

Cecilia McDowall's fresh and appealing style is amply displayed in this cycle, subtitled 'Three Shakespeare Songs'. In total, six Shakespeare texts are used, and McDowall's response encompasses a flee...

First performed by the choirs of St Paul's, Westminster Cathedral, and Westminster Abbey, this anthem sets a medieval English poem to contemplative music with all the hallmarks of McDowall's style: ex...

This expressive Wedding anthem sets an extract from William Blake's Auguries of Innocence. With chromatic inflections and gently arching vocal lines, the music perfectly reflects the text's emphasis o...

Setting a fifteenth-century English text containing some short Latin passages, this is a joyful, dance-like carol with a medieval feel. The spirited, lilting melody begins in the sopranos and altos bu...

Cecilia McDowall's fresh and appealing style is amply displayed in this cycle, subtitled 'Three Shakespeare Songs' and first performed by the BBC Singers. In total, six Shakespeare texts are used, and...

Setting part of a Eucharistic hymn text by Thomas Aquinas, this piece is suitable for liturgical or concert use. Flowing and expressive, it features homophonic sections, melismatic lines, and optional...

Cecilia, Busy Like a Bee is a reflective setting of a text adapted from the Divine Office for St Cecilia's Day. The influence of plainchant is particularly apparent in the soprano solo, and McDowall i...