James Whitbourn

The Alleluia Jubilate was written for the Choir Schools’ Association Conference and is therefore a creation for well-trained young musicians. The opening phrases in which the conductor separates the syllables with restsis particularly effective in cathedrals and spaces with long reverberation time.Contemporary British composer and conductor James Whitbourn an award-winning creator of Choral music film and television scores and works for theconcert hall may be best known for his largest composition the oratorio Annalies which sets words from The Diary of Anne Frank.

Contemporary British composer and conductor James Whitbourn an award-winning creator of Choral music film and television scores and works for the concert hall scored this simple profound poem for Djembe drum treble Voices Organ and speaker. The African drum lifts A Prayer of Desmond Tutu from a chordal evocative prayer setting and places it in history. Archbishop of South Africa Desmond Tutu was in office at the end of apartheid and the releaseof Nelson Mandela from prison. His leadership to truth and reconciliation in South Africa has been instrumental in that country’s development since 1994. He is the winner of the Nobel Prize. This poem is characteristic ofhis optimism and faith.