Katherine Dienes-Williams - Christ Rising (2019)

“Christ Rising”, the new album from Guildford Cathedral Choir under the inspired direction of the Organist and Master of the Choristers Katherine Dienes-Williams, features music which follows the liturgical and emotional journey through Holy Week.

The events which begin with the reading of the Passion gospel on Palm Sunday, move through the Last Supper and the Betrayal to the desolation at the foot of the Cross and conclude with the miraculous joy of the Resurrection on Easter Day, are as much the tale of the Christian faith as of Holy Week. Through participation in the whole sequence of services during Holy Week, the Christian shares in Christ’s own journey, from the triumphal entry into Jerusalem to the empty tomb on Easter morning.

The choir is on top form here and, in the new acoustic of the cathedral following major internal works, makes a very impressive sound indeed. Featuring choral music by William Byrd, Cecilia McDowall, Maurice Duruflé, Pablo Casals, Peter Philips, Nicholas White, Charles Stanford, Brian Runnett and Rudolf Mauersberger and two organ pieces by JS Bach and Jean Langlais, this wonderful selection of music for Holy Week will bear repeated listening.