Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Orlando Gibbons: The Verse Anthem
A joint workshop with Cascadia Viols
Saturday, February 27, 1:00–4:00 PM
By the early 17th century, English church composers had developed a distinctly hybrid form: the verse anthem, which alternates full choral sections with passages for solo voice accompanied not by organ but by a consort of viols. It's a texture that sits somewhere between sacred polyphony and chamber music — intimate, expressive, and built to showcase both a solo singer's declamation and the instrumentalists' close ensemble playing.
Orlando Gibbons was among the form's great masters, and his This is the Record of John — a setting of the Gospel account of John the Baptist, built around a dramatic dialogue between soloist and choir — remains the most celebrated example. But it's far from his only contribution: several of his verse anthems for voices and viols survive, each pairing solo declamation against choral affirmation in different ways.
In this workshop, presented jointly with Cascadia Viols, singers and viol players will come together to explore this repertoire as it was meant to be heard — voices and viols in dialogue, rather than voices alone. We'll dig into This is the Record of John alongside several of Gibbons's lesser-known verse anthems, exploring how he balances florid solo writing against the weight of the full choir.
Saturday, February 27, 1:00–4:00 PM | $40 | Grace Episcopal Church, 1535 NE 17th, Portland
Orlando Gibbons: The Verse Anthem
A joint workshop with Cascadia Viols
Saturday, February 27, 1:00–4:00 PM
By the early 17th century, English church composers had developed a distinctly hybrid form: the verse anthem, which alternates full choral sections with passages for solo voice accompanied not by organ but by a consort of viols. It's a texture that sits somewhere between sacred polyphony and chamber music — intimate, expressive, and built to showcase both a solo singer's declamation and the instrumentalists' close ensemble playing.
Orlando Gibbons was among the form's great masters, and his This is the Record of John — a setting of the Gospel account of John the Baptist, built around a dramatic dialogue between soloist and choir — remains the most celebrated example. But it's far from his only contribution: several of his verse anthems for voices and viols survive, each pairing solo declamation against choral affirmation in different ways.
In this workshop, presented jointly with Cascadia Viols, singers and viol players will come together to explore this repertoire as it was meant to be heard — voices and viols in dialogue, rather than voices alone. We'll dig into This is the Record of John alongside several of Gibbons's lesser-known verse anthems, exploring how he balances florid solo writing against the weight of the full choir.
Saturday, February 27, 1:00–4:00 PM | $40 | Grace Episcopal Church, 1535 NE 17th, Portland