John Rutter - Gloria (1974)

John Milford Rutter CBE (born 24 September 1945) is an English composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and record producer, mainly of choral music.

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Gloria (1974)
Dedication: Mel Olson (1930-2001)

1. Allegro vivace – "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (0:00)
2. Andante – "Domine Deus" (4:49)
Soloists: Mary Seers, Mary Hitch, Caroline Ashton
3. Vivace e ritmico – "Quoniam tu solus sanctus" (11:48)

The Cambridge Singers & The Philip Jones Brass Ensemble &
The City of London Sinfonia conducted by John Rutter
John Scott, organ

Gloria resulted from a commission of Mel Olson, who conducted choirs in Omaha, Nebraska, for his choir The Voices of Mel Olson. It was Rutter's first commission from the US. It is a setting of parts of the Latin Gloria, part of the mass. Rutter composed it in 1974. He structured the text in three movements and scored it for choir, brass, percussion and organ, with an alternative version for choir and orchestra. Although setting a liturgical text, it was conceived as a concert piece. Rutter composed it according to Olson's specifications, noting his influence: "Much of the credit must go to Mel Olson … because, in telling me what he was looking for in a new choral work, he was telling me what thousands of other choral directors were looking for too."

Rutter conducted the premiere in Omaha on 5 May 1974, as his first premiere in the United States. It was published in 1976 by Oxford University Press in versions for organ or orchestra.

Rutter notes to have been influenced by Francis Poulenc, Igor Stravinsky and William Walton. Poulenc composed a stand-alone Gloria for use in concerts in 1959. The brass treatment in Rutter's work shows similarities to Walton's cantata Belshazzar’s Feast. Rutter also notes the influence of Gregorian chant throughout the work. A reviewer notes as Rutter's hallmarks: "an unfailing knack to get to the root of the text, exquisitely balanced vocal writing, melting harmonies, intensely sweet turns of phrase (sometimes overtly saccharine), short ecstatic climaxes, but also a willingness to be astringent, and rhythmically powerful." Another reviewer attributes the lasting success of Rutter's music to the facts that he "writes music that people want to perform and to hear", and that it is interesting and challenging for performers "without putting insuperable obstacles in their path. Because of its relation to the angelic annunciation, it has been included in Christmas concerts. Riley described the work in 2011 as evergreen.