The first single from a new album of music by RSCM composer Joanna Forbes L'Estrange (SIGCD790) has been released!

The commission for the setting of ‘Drop, Drop, Slow Tears’ (Royal School of Church Music) came from David Acres who wanted a new piece in memory of his dear friend, James Bowman.

Jo says: 

My intention with every choral piece I compose is a) to be led by the text and b) to create music which feels nice to sing. Once I’ve finished writing a piece, I always go into the studio and record it, line by line (Alexander sings the tenor and bass lines, and I sing the soprano and alto). Often, as a result of that process, I’ll make small changes to make the phrase lengths more comfortable, the words more audible, the melodies more singable and so on..

This process has the added advantage of creating learning tracks for choirs who like to hear their individual vocal lines as they’re learning. I have part-learning tracks for every piece I’ve composed, available from L'Estrange Music . I don’t like the word accessible because it sounds patronising but what I want to say is that my music is for all choirs to sing, not just the professionals!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy my setting of these words, performed so beautifully by London Voices, and I hope you will want to sing it with your SATB choir.