Come, Let us worship Bless the Lord, O my soul Blessed is the man Gladsome light Lord, now lettest thou Rejoice O Virgin The six psalms Praise the name of the Lord Blessed are thou O Lord Having beheld the resurrection of Christ My soul magnifies the Lord The great doxology Today salvation has come Thou didst rise from the tomb To Thee the victorious leader We praise thee
Signum Classics are proud to release a LIVE recording of the stirring performance by Tenebrae of Rachmaninoff’s ‘All-Night Vigil’ (Vsenoshchnoye bdeniye, Op. 37).
The recording was made live at the North Wales International Music Festival in conjunction with Boosey & Hawkes, Music Publishers Ltd.
The roots of the Russian Orthodox Church are traceable back into the Third Century A.D. Whilst Western forms of Christianity continued to evolve, the Orthodox tradition has been preserved largely intact since the 11th Century, despite persecution of the Church under an intolerant Communist regime in Russia.
The music of the Russian Orthodox Church features vocal chants, the oldest of which is known as znamenny (from the Slavonic znamia meaning “sign”). The melody of this chant is extremely simple, and whilst other composers added their characteristic harmonic effects, Rachmaninoff consciously preserved the modal purity of the original in his setting of the Vespers.
The all-night vigil is celebrated on the eve of the main feasts of the Orthodox Church. Originally it lasted all night and consisted of three separate services to celebrate the beauty of the setting sun, and to reflect on the spiritual light of Christ as the new light of the coming day and the eternal light of heaven.
Rachmaninoff’s setting of the vigil was written in 1915, in the middle of the First World War. He has used authentic znamenny chant in seven movements, with two movements employing Greek chants.
“Even in my dreams I could not have imagined that I would write such a work” Rachmaninoff told the singers at the first performance in March 1915.
The work is dedicated to the scholar Stephan Vasilevitch Smolensky who introduced Rachmaninoff to the repertoire of the church, however the composer’s inspiration was as much politically motivated as spiritually – the composition was a powerful affirmation of nationalism during the war.
Tenebrae characteristically create an atmosphere of spiritual and musical reflection at their performances, using candlelight and movement within ecclesiastical venues.
"Nigel Short and Tenebrae have just the right balance of control and passion, reverence and exuberance that makes for such a superb performance."
The Organ
"The result is both intimate and powerfully atmospheric, shedding new and memorable light on what usually comes across as a massive choral spectacular."
Classic FM Magazine
"The All-Night Vigil is celebrated on the eve of the main feasts of the Russian Orthodox church with the purpose of showing a sense of beauty in the setting sun."
Come, Let us Worship
