Cappella Nova
Scotland's durable Cappella Nova specializes in early Scottish choral music and contemporary music of Scotland and the rest of Britain. The group has commissioned and performed more than 100 new works and has collaborated with various artists from the pop and jazz worlds.
Cappella Nova was founded in 1982 by conductor and music researcher Alan Tavener and Rebecca Tavener, a soprano; Alan Tavener remains its director. It is Scotland's only professional choir specializing in early music and contemporary music. Cappella Nova, headquartered in Glasgow, is a small group of about 16 members. Beginning in 1986, the choir has a long record of commissioning new works from some of Britain's most important composers; these include John Tavener's oratorio Resurrection (1990), which was broadcast on BBC Radio 3, and various pieces by James MacMillan, including the cantata Seven Last Words from the Cross (1994). In 1992, Cappella Nova began its recording career with the box set Robert Carver: Scottish Renaissance Polyphony on the ASV label, and over the years, the group has specialized in the music of this composer, both in performance and on recordings.
Cappella Nova performed for Queen Elizabeth II on Saint Andrew's Day (November 30) at the opening of the National Museum of Scotland in 1998. The choir has shared stages with a large variety of artists, including the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, percussionist Evelyn Glennie, and R&B group Sister Sledge. Cappella Nova appeared on the 2003 album Hate, by The Delgados. Cappella Nova has made multiple tours of Germany and France, also appearing on tour in Ireland, continental Europe, Russia, and the U.S. At home in Scotland, Cappella Nova went on tour in 2016 and 2017 with Echoes & Traces, a program of eight new works commissioned in observance of the 900th anniversary of St. Magnus of Orkney. Cappella Nova formed an offshoot group, Canty, which sings medieval music; together, the two groups have recorded more than 20 albums on the ASV, Gaudeamus, and Linn labels; releases on the latter include Tavener Conducts Tavener in 2015 and Sir James MacMillan: Consecration in 2021. Cappella Nova maintains several outreach programs, including Singing for All, an outgrowth of Tavener's research interests in how singing promotes physical and mental well-being.
© James Manheim /TiVo
Discography
8 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Veni Sancte Spiritus: A Pentecost Service by William Byrd
Richard Taruskin, Cappella Nova
Classical - Released by Musical Heritage Society on 2 Dec 2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Who Are These Angels? New Choral Music by James MacMillan
Classical - Released by Linn Records on 17 Oct 2011
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
MacMillan: Tenebrae
Classical - Released by Linn Records on 1 Nov 2007
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
MacMillan: Consecration
Classical - Released by Linn Records on 5 Nov 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tavener Conducts Tavener
Classical - Released by Linn Records on 13 Nov 2015
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Ockeghem: The Motets
Richard Taruskin, Cappella Nova
Classical - Released by Musical Heritage Society on 11 Nov 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Josquin des Prez: Motets for the Blessed Virgin
Cappella Nova, Richard Taruskin
Classical - Released by Musical Heritage Society on 2 Dec 2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Ockeghem - Prince of Music
Cappella Nova, Richard Taruskin
Classical - Released by Musical Heritage Society on 14 Oct 2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo