Hymns to the Virgin

London Concert Choir

London Concert Choir with Mark Forkgen (conductor) and Julian Thomas (organ ) present a concert of anthems and motets dedicated to the Virgin Mary by composers from the Renaissance to the 21st Century, to include music by Britten, Bruckner, Byrd, Gorecki, Guerrero, Monteverdi, Tavener and Tchaikovsky.

The works include Ave Virgo Sanctissima, one of the the Spanish composer Guerrero’s most popular works, reflecting his devotion to the Virgin Mary; Byrd’s glorious setting of the Magnificat for eight voices, in English; settings of words from the Eastern Orthodox Liturgy by both Tchaikovsky and Tavener; a small-scale Hymn to the Virgin composed to medieval words by Britten while still a schoolboy, and Totus Tuus, written by the Polish composer Gorecki for a visit of Pope John Paul II to his homeland in 1987.