Sheet Music by Female Composers: A Rich and Diverse Selection

Adapted from Velvet Shoes by Elinor Wylie, the text of this carol portrays the tranquil, almost eerie, atmosphere of walking alone in fresh snow. The musical setting reflects scenery, with a soaring s...

This carol sets the final three verses of Sara Teasdale’s light-hearted retelling of the nativity story, in which a host of angels arrive at the stable, and herald the birth with their joyful song. Th...

The poet, Wendy Cope, conjures a heartwarming image of Christmas in the home. This setting of her comforting poem translates this imagery into a classic Christmas choral sound - a simple, memorable tu...

As an accessible and versatile opener or introit, this piece sets an uplifting verse of poetry by Nigerian poet Ozioma Ogbaji. Though not overtly sacred, the spiritual message of the text is hopeful a...

Seeking You was commissioned by the Saint Louis Chamber Chorus, where Kerensa Briggs held a three year tenure as composer-in-residence. The text by Charles Anthony Silvestri tells of a weary traveller...

Inspired by and incorporating the plainsong melody, this exquisite new choral work by Kerensa Briggs breathes new life into the cherished Latin text 'Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est' ('Where charity...

Ave virgo sanctissima was commissioned by Robert Sharpe and the Choir of York Minster, for the service of "Nine Lessons and Carols" in 2023. The text is a lyrical prayer which praises the virtue of Ma...

O sing to the Lord was commissioned by Peter Asprey and premiered by the Choir of Holy Sepulchre, London, as the introit for a special service to mark St Cecilia’s Day in 2024. The uplifting text, tak...

A setting of the Latin text of the great Antiphon ‘O Sapientia’ (O Wisdom) for Advent, commissioned by Choir & Organ magazine in partnership with the Choir of King’s College London and supported by PR...

Bird Raptures, a set of three pieces which draw inspiration stylistically from twentieth-century partsong, was composed for St Martin’s Voices in spring 2025, especially for Lucy Walker’s debut album...

Echo is the third movement of Seascapes, which was commissioned by the BBC Singers, as companion music to the Four Sea Interludes by Benjamin Britten, arranged for the organ by Anna Lapwood. It was pr...

This setting of the familiar opening lines of Henry Vaughan’s 'The World' was Lucy Walker's first commission as Composer-in-Residence with St Martin’s Voices, and was premiered by the ensemble in June...

Love Flows was commissioned by the Choir of Wells Cathedral and Alexander Hamilton to mark the occasion of the installation of the Reverend Canon Toby Wright as Dean of Wells in June 2024. The etherea...

Written for the BBC Singers in 2019, Stars above, earth below is a hopeful and reflective setting of the poem Leaves by Sara Teasdale (1884–1933). The piece begins with celestial, descending lines acr...

Setting a prose text penned by Helen Keller in her 'The Open Door,' composer and conductor Andrea Ramsey has created a sensitive yet powerful new work exploring 'All that we love deeply becomes part o...

This five movement work for SATB choir is based on five different Native American peoples. The sequence starts with 'Falling,' a lullaby, and ends with 'Rising,' an image of spirits gently swaying on...

The composer states:'Nightfall is an incantatory piece inspired by how light changes at the end of a day: the adding and subtracting of colours and shadow; the slowly building and diminishing dynamics...

This chant melody was brought to America from West Africa. It is meant to be sung as a meditation. Pedal notes should sound like a drone that supports the melody. It all leads to an experience for the...

The composition 'An Evening Prayer' for four-part mixed a-cappella choir (SATB) by Magdalena Zimmermann is based on a sacred poem by the English Baroque poet and philosopher Thomas Browne. To set thes...

Melissa Roth Young’s Lux Aeterna offers a beautiful and heartfelt setting of the timeless Latin text, long used to honor those who have gone before us. The music reflects the text’s message of hope am...

In 1994, for the 500th anniversary of the University of Aberdeen, Judith Weir wrote two settings of 17th century English verse and choir, entitles Two Human Hymns. In 1997, Weir arranged the first of...

Judith Weir's 'Ave Regina Caelorum' for unaccompanied choir SSATBB. This piece was commissioned by Merton College, Oxford as part of the Merton Choirbook, a collection of music being assembled to cel...

Preces & Responses and The Lord’s Prayer composed for the choir of Keble College, Oxford. Scored for SATB choir with cantor.

Commissioned for Stile Antico by the Stile Antico Foundation. 3 minutes for trenor solo and mixed voices. I was delighted to be asked by Stile Antico to write a new piece for their ‘The Prince of Musi...