Space becomes sacred when it has a meaning above and beyond itself, and time becomes sacred when it hearkens back to mans primordial beginnings, rooted. This list of compositions includes all the published works by english composer benjamin britten with opus number. Eight medieval lyrics for unaccompanied ssatb chorus. The excellent recorded sound saps all the benefit from the airy spaces of the temple church in london without ever becoming swimmy. The sacred and the profane is a classic work of scholarship that provides strong evidence in support of a christian worldview. In a book of great originality and scholarship, a noted historian of religion traces manifestations of the sacred from primitive to modern times, in terms of space, time, nature and the cosmos, and life itself. Premiered on 5 may 1941 at brander matthews hall, new york. Sacred and profane berlin rias chamber choir, marcus creed on allmusic 2001. Benjamin britten 8 sacred and profane medieval lyrics. Britten had a distinct affection for medieval lyrics like those he used in sacred and profane and a. Its this premise that both drives eliades exhaustive exploration of the. The programme, entitled sacred and profane, featured benjamin brittens late choral work sacred and profane alongside his early hymn to st cecilia, plus gabriel jacksons ave, regina caelorum, luciano berios cries of london, and two pieces by the swedish composer lars johan werle, orpheus and canzone 126 di francesco petrarca. In the sacred and the profane, mircea eliade observes that while contemporary people believe their world is entirely profane, or secular, they still at times find themselves connected unconsciously to the memory of something sacred. From elgars partsongs 1904 to one of brittens very last works, sacred and profane 1975, here are some of the most beautiful pieces in the english a capella repertoire, many of them rarely recorded.
The sacred refers to those collective representations that are set apart from society, or that which transcends the humdrum of everyday life. The excellent recorded sound picks up all the benefit from the airy spaces of the temple church in london without ever becoming swimmy. In each of the genres represented here, britten created works which defined and shaped their genres going forward. The nature of religion is the most accessible of the several books by mircea eliade that ive read. Sacred and profane is the second book of the peter decker and rina lazarus series and ends a few months after book 1 left off. Sacred and profane, an album by rias kammerchor, marcus creed on spotify we and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. The sacred could be good or evil, and the profane could be either as well. This recording is the perfect introduction to this repertoire. Christs nativity sweet was the song preparations new price new pomp and carol of king cnut. The opening of the sixteens 2018 pilgrimage, pairing sacred and profane music by two english composers spanning over 400 years, william cornysh and benjamin britten. The work was first performed by the wilbye consort of voices, for whom the work was composed, on 14 september 1975 at the maltings, snape in suffolk, england, directed by peter pears. The works span a period of some 45 years of brittens life, from the everpopular childhood a hymn to the virgin to the often fiendishly tricky sacred and profane based on that intriguing mix of eight medieval lyrics. Brittens extraordinary gifts for choosing and setting texts, as well as his lifelong artistic relationship with peter pears. Mircea eliades study of the history of religions builds on and strengthens rudolph ottos the idea of the holy, in which otto argues that religious experience is wholly different than natural experience.
Introduction 11 when the sacred manifests itself man becomes aware of the sacred because it itself, shows itself, as something wholly differ ent from the profane. The book opens while peter is camping in the mountains with rinas sons, and on the last day of their vacation, one of. Both books present a strong case against the atheistic. The performances are relatively quick, but rather than detracting from the sense of reflection it just increases the impact, especially in the last movement, a death, which is as harrowing, unforgiving and profound as it could. Included on this gramophone awardwinning recording is the last choral work for professionals which britten was to complete sacred and profane a collection of eight. A hymn to the virgin was composed at the age of 16 and perfectly demonstrates the young composers melodic gift and sensitivity to text the rapturous climax on the word. The sacred distinguishes itself from the profane by what eliade terms a hierophany or manifestation of the sacred.
Britten makes constant demands on vocal artistry, best displayed in the last work he ever wrote for unaccompanied voices, sacred and profane, composed in the winter of 197475. A perfect example of the young brittens masterful vocal writing in a christmas choral suite destined to become a major repertoire work. A highly original and scholarly work on spirituality by noted historian mircea eliade. His birthday, 22 november, is the feastday of saint cecilia, the patron saint of music, and he showed musical gifts very early in life. Please note all btc numbers are provisional at this stage.
Renowned anthropologist and historian of religion mircea eliade attempts to describe how religious people experience the sacred. The sacred and the profane serves as an excellent introduction to the history of religion, but its perspective also encompasses. A perfect example of this is sacred and profane, where he gives us a fascinating mixture of the devotional and the rumbustiously secular. Libretto by montagu slater, after the poem the borough by george crabbe. Mark baker, conductor all saints cathedral, milwaukee 22 november 2015. Britten aged 61 1 st godricks hymn mid 12th century 2 i mon waxe wod. In that pursuit i am indebted to historians, philosophers, psychologists, and theologians of the 20th century. Durkheim explicitly stated that the sacred profane dichotomy was not equivalent to goodevil. The performances are relatively quick, but rather than detracting from the sense of reflection it just increases the impact, especially in the last movement, a death, which is as harrowing, unforgiving and profound as it could possibly be with some glorious solo work. The nature of me, i find indulging my agnosticism by way of a deep interest in the history and philosophy of religion more interesting that being an angry antitheist. Sacred time eliade introduces his section on sacred time by claiming that for religious man there were two types of time, sacred and profane, the former experienced. Britten and cornysh plus sacred and profane add up to the.
Britten is celebrated for his ability to mix sacred and secular expertly in order to showcase the voice in all its multifaceted glory. For durkheim, religion is about the separation of the sacred from the profane. Detail of painting c brian hogwood sacred and profane, op. List of compositions by benjamin britten wikipedia. Eight medieval lyrics for unaccompanied voices ssatb, op. In durkheims theory, the sacred represented the interests of the group, especially unity, which were embodied. Gillian widdicombe, financial times, 16 september 1975. Sacred and profane was brittens last unaccompanied choral work dating from 1975 and is truly outstanding. The sacred profaned eq resource the resource for your. Decker is coming to grips with his place as a jew in an attempt to cement a relationship with rina. Sacred and profane, an album by benjamin britten, choir of clare college, cambridge, timothy brown on spotify we and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes.
Britten chose his texts with great care and devotion. The popular image of the religion of primitive peoples is pretty unflattering. He also gives a fascinating explanation of primitive religions. Benjamin brittens sacred and profane consists of eight settings for unaccompanied mixed voices of lyrics from rt davis collection of medieval english lyrics composed early in 1975 for peter pears and the wilbye consort of. All content c brittenpears foundation 2012 unless stated. Benjamin brittens sacred and profane consists of eight settings for unaccompanied mixed voices of lyrics from rt. The works span a period of some 45 years of brittens life, from the everpopular childhood a hymn to the virgin to the often fiendishly tricky sacred and profane based on that intriguing mix of eight medieval.
The works recorded here span most of brittens creative life, from a hymn to the virgin, a schoolboy work to sacred and profane, written in the year before his death. Britten was born in lowestoft in suffolk, the son of a dentist and a talented amateur musician. From the stone age to the eleusinian mysteries, was pretty dense. Benjamin britten was a british composer, conductor, and pianist. Britten makes constant demands on vocal artistry best displayed in the last work he ever wrote for unaccompanied voices, sacred and profane, composed in the winter of 19745. Benjamin britten sheet music books scores buy online. The sacred indicates a break in profane existence, both in space and time. Pick up the sacred book of tunare and brell in the library rotunda 01 degmar, the lost castle this is a ground spawn as indicated by on the map, after a mob will spawn and attack defeat the dead apostle you angered by touching the sacred book 01 degmar, the lost castle. The book includes the poems in their original form and brittens settings for each one written for high. Britten thematic catalogue btc1165 sacred and profane. Reflections on mircea eliades the sacred and the profane. Chandos records is one of the worlds premier classical music record companies, best known for its ground breaking search for neglected musical gems.