The Bluebird - Stanford

#vivalamusicachamberchoir #simonlumby #choralmusic #classicalmusic #choirsongs #choral #choralsinging #choir #choirperformance #choirmusic #chorale #choirs

The blue bird – Charles Villiers Stanford
Sung by ‘Viva la Musica’, East Midlands Chamber Choir (Jo Boddison, soprano)
📶https://www.vivalamusica.org.uk/
Conducted by Simon Lumby📶https://www.simonlumby.co.uk/

Recorded live in Bishop Street Methodist Church – Saturday 18th March 2023

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The blue bird by Charles Villiers Stanford (1854-1924), with words by Mary E Coleridge (1861-1907—novelist, poet and great-grandniece of the famous Coleridge), is his most celebrated part-song.

Marked Larghetto tranquillo, this gem is the third of 8 Part-Songs, Opus 119, all settings of texts by Mary Coleridge, who during her lifetime was much better known as a novelist. Highly regarded by a minority including some distinguished figures, her poetry is fresh and direct. Stanford’s admiration of her work was not shared by many of his contemporaries, though Frank Bridge and Hubert Parry are among the exceptions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Text:

The lake lay blue below the hill
O'er it, as I looked, there flew
Across the waters, cold and still
A bird whose wings were palest blue

The sky above was blue at last
The sky beneath me blue in blue
A moment, ere the bird had passed
It caught his image as he flew