Cecilia McDowall

Setting a collect from the Book of Common Prayer, this introit plays on McDowall's characteristic use of dissonance and modal inflections to create a hypnotic and slightly unsettled soundworld that re...

McDowall's poignant Angel of the Battlefield, originally commissioned by the Glasgow School of Art Choir as part of the Composeher project, is both an exposition on the horrors of war and a celebratio...

McDowall's moving and poignant setting of this three-movement work is both an exposition on the horrors of war and a celebration of healers. Inspired by renowned nurse Clara Barton, the text is drawn...

Written to celebrate the 950th anniversary of St Mary Magdalen Church, Oxford, this compelling double-choir setting of the Missa brevis is suitable for both liturgical and concert settings. The work o...

Written to celebrate the 950th anniversary of St Mary Magdalen Church, Oxford, this compelling double-choir Missa brevis setting is suitable for liturgical and concert settings. The music is beautiful...

Written in response to Gibbons' famous setting of the same text from Psalm 47, this piece uses syncopated rhythms, imitative polyphonic textures, and declarative homophonic moments to create a piece f...

Bless to me this day is a tranquil setting of 'The Journey Prayer' from the Celtic compendium Carmina Gadelica. The sense of prescient optimism is captured in the flowing piano part, while the simplic...

Bless to me this day is a tranquil setting of 'The Journey Prayer' from the Celtic compendium Carmina Gadelica. The sense of prescient optimism is captured in the flowing piano part, while the simplic...

Commissioned by Roderick Williams, this characterful trilogy of songs sets poems by John Greening that present a vibrant, modern take on each of Schubert's song cycles.

Commissioned by Roderick Williams, this characterful trilogy of songs sets poems by John Greening that present a vibrant, modern take on each of Schubert's song cycles.

White Fox Woman is a striking nine-minute mini-opera for middle to low voice accompanied either by Soprano Saxophone or Oboe. This compelling work was commissioned by oboist Paul Goodey in 2002 and wr...

The organ part is supportive, but full of interest and not merely accompanimental. Particularly memorable are the jaunty Gloria, with its constantly shifting time-signatures, and the haunting Agnus De...

For SSA unaccompanied. New Horizons showcases the wealth of exciting, innovative, and occasionally challenging choral music being written today. It encompasses the whole gamut of small-scale choral ge...

Commissioned and first performed by the choir of Liverpool Cathedral, this anthem is ideal for use during the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. The choral lines move between sonorous homophonic writing...

This joyful and richly expressive choral cantata is a setting of what is often thought of as a Thanksgiving psalm or a psalm in praise of Harvest time. From its atmospheric opening through to its upbe...

A setting of Psalm 127 (Unless the Lord builds the house), this compelling anthem possesses a luminescent quality supported by radiant harmonic textures. It is framed by Latin text taken from the Saxo...

This lively setting of the Venerable Bede's Christ is the morning star features all the hallmarks of McDowall's original and vibrant style. With rich harmonies, compelling modulations, and a flowing o...

This joyful setting of Psalm 98 is a bright and celebratory anthem of praise. The intricate organ writing offsets emphatic statements from the choir full of melodic and harmonic interest while grounde...

A Time for all Seasons is an evocative cantata that explores the complexities of the human condition. McDowall's impressive range of musical styles, effective antiphonal writing, and artful juxtaposit...

This joyous, upbeat anthem sets a text by contemporary poet Sean Street on the subject of 'alma mater', reflecting on the profound ties we can form to a time or a place. The bright, driving organ part...

This significant seven-movement work from Cecilia McDowall presents an imaginative pairing of extracts from The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci with texts from the Latin Missa pro defunctis. Da Vinci's...

Offprinted from The Oxford Book of Easy Flexible Anthems, A Prayer of St Columba is an expressive and emotive anthem with appealing, arching melodies underpinned by a sparkling organ part.

Written for the Choir of The Cathedral of St John, Albuquerque, Ash Wednesday sets typically fervent verses by Christina Rossetti. The vocal lines are mostly simple and affecting, with some highly ind...

The third movement of McDowall's powerful Da Vinci Requiem, this anthem is a compelling pairing of the 'Lacrimosa' text from the Missa pro defunctis with extracts from the Notebooks of Leonardo da Vin...