The Sixteen, Britten Sinfonia, Harry Christophers

Few living composers communicate with the emotional directness of James MacMillan, so the first performance of his Stabat Mater is a major occasion. Harry Christophers directs The Sixteen and Britten Sinfonia place MacMillan in context with music from Tallis to Vaughan Williams.

For the composer, ’beauty is at the heart of our Christian faith’ and his new Stabat Mater is sure to be profoundly shaped by his beliefs. But this is a work with deep roots and a universal message; placed next to hauntingly emotional music by Tallis and his own Miserere, the Stabat Mater becomes a celebration both of tradition and of radical renewal.