Young New Yorkers’ Chorus; Alex Canovas, conductor
(click the playlist icon in the upper right corner of the video to see the other movements)
Program Notes
I. We Look for You (Evensong – Raag Hamsadhwani)
II. The Year’s Midnight (Matins – Raag Malkauns)
III. The Unexpected Early Hour (Lauds – Raag Ahir Bhairav)
This set of three carols, on new texts by poet Rebecca Gayle Howell, traces a journey through the solstice, the longest night of the year. The texts follow the canonical hours of Evensong, Matins and Lauds, and the music maps onto Hindustani raags for those same hours (Raag Hamsadhwani (p*/d), Malkauns (p/d) and Ahir Bhairav (p/d) ). This set is a meeting of cultures, and of the many ways we honor the darkness, and celebrate the return of light.
(*please note that the way Hamsadhwani is spelled in Devanagari the Hindi pronunciation link is not correct – but it gives the correct pronunciation.)
Recording
Here is a selection from three recordings of A Winter Breviary available on Spotify:
Also check out these beautiful recordings of A Winter Breviary for brass quintet, arranged by Gaudete Brass
(click on the icon in the upper right corner to hear the other movements)
Resources
For a deep dive into this work, please read poet Rebecca Gayle Howell’s post on the Oxford University Press Blog.
For further deep dives into most of the raags in Reena’s work, a great resource is Joep Bor’s Raga Guide, which gives a concise description/transcription of each raag, and has accompanying audio for each raag.
Premiere/Performances
The Unexpected Early Hour was recorded by the BBC Singers and broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on December 24, 2021. The first live performance of The Unexpected Early Hour was by the Los Angeles Master Chorale on December 8, 2021.