Andy Berry, Author at Patrick Hawes

Eventide: US Premiere

Andy Berry — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 14:29:23 +0000

Yesterday evening, I was privileged to be able to watch via LiveStream the US Premiere of my work Eventide: In Memoriam Edith Cavell.

Originally commissioned by the Sheringham & Cromer Choral Society, last night’s excellent performance was by the Oratorio Society of Minnesota under their director Matthew Mehaffey.

The performance can still be seen until 19 Nov at www.wooddale.org/events and scroll to 00:37:22.

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Lazarus Requiem: German Premiere

Andy Berry — Sun, 02 Nov 2025 08:38:59 +0000

Wishing all the musicians at the German premiere of my Lazarus Requiem the very best of luck with the performance in Wetzlar!

Click here for more information.

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The Wedding at Cana launch

Andy Berry — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 08:25:08 +0000

Launching today, join me and Choir of the Earth for this 7-week choral course and be among the first to learn, sing and record my newly revised The Wedding At Cana!

I originally wrote this back in 1989 and it was my first large-scale commission. Fast forward to today, and I have created a chamber version which Choir of the Earth will be teaching and performing over the coming weeks.

For more information click here or head straight to Choir of the Earth’s website to sign up.

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A Stranger Here

Andy Berry — Tue, 09 Sep 2025 09:23:57 +0000

COMPOSER’S NOTE

The text of this choral piece takes the form of the last verse of Thomas Traherne’s poem The Salutation. In many of his poems, Traherne conveys a sense of childlike wonder, and in this poem he expresses genuine awe at the mystery of having come into being. He addresses his own infant body (‘these little limbs’) as if amazed at his own incarnation, marvelling at having entered this world of beauty and light and asking where his soul was before. In the words of A Stranger Here, he expresses deep gratitude for the sheer gift of life.

It is essential that choirs are sensitive to this sense of gratitude. This is not a gratitude which is sung from the rooftops but is the product of quiet and profound reflection and revelation. The glory of our existence is a mysterious glory, seen through the eyes of strangers in the world. With the words ‘But that they mine should be’, comes the realisation that the world’s treasures are an extraordinary gift to us all – and there must be a sense of this growing realisation as the music gradually moves towards great peace and a sense of fulfilment in the final tonic chords of the pure and nourishing key of D flat major.

Commissioned by Justin Addicott and Mohawk Area School District, Pennsylvania. Premiered on 21st February 2026 at at the Scottish Rite Cathedral, New Castle, Pennsylvania by the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) Region Choral Festival.

DURATION
4 minutes

CHORUS
SATB

CHORUS
Piano

YEAR OF COMPOSITION
2025

PUBLISHER
Hawes Music

SHEET MUSIC

View Score

Available from
Hawes Music
JW Pepper
Music Room
Music Shop Europe

A STRANGER HERE

From the last verse of the poem The Salutation:

A stranger here
Strange things doth meet, strange glory see;
Strange treasures lodged in this fair world appear,
Strange all and new to me;
But that they mine should be, who nothing was,
That strangest is of all, yet brought to pass.

Words: Thomas Traherne (1636 – 1674)

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Choir & Organ (Autumn 2025)

Andy Berry — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 15:57:55 +0000

“The soul of song: reclaiming melody at the heart of music.”

In the third instalment of his new regular column ‘Grasping The Nettle‘ for Choir & Organ magazine, Patrick explores melody as a natural expression of the inner-self, and as a connection between choir and audience.

Read the Autumn 2025 article here >

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Choir & Organ

Andy Berry — Wed, 14 May 2025 10:07:34 +0000

“Finding the soul in sacred music in an age of reason and doubt.”

In the second instalment of his new regular column ‘Grasping The Nettle‘ for Choir & Organ magazine, Patrick explores the tensions, transitions and timeless beauty of choir and organ music in a changing world.

Read the Summer 2025 article here >

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The Son of Man

Andy Berry — Thu, 24 Apr 2025 09:07:10 +0000

COMPOSER’S NOTE

The Son of Man is an oratorio is in two parts, each lasting approximately fifty minutes and scored for choir, three soloists and chamber orchestra. The baritone soloist takes on the role of the Son of Man, while the soprano and tenor add commentary to the unfolding story. A special symbiosis of music and poetry opens up the visions of Ezekiel, the dreams of Daniel, the meditations of the Psalmist, and the revelations of St John the Divine.

Following in the footsteps of Handel’s Messiah, the work uses texts from both the Old and New Testaments. Unlike Messiah, however, which is a devotional work in adoration and praise of the man Jesus, The Son of Man addresses eternal questions: What does it mean to be human? How are we to understand the purpose and destiny of our life? What does a fully realised human life look like?

The oratorio received a rapturous response at its World Premiere in Houston, Texas September 2024, performed by the Grammy® award-winning Houston Chamber Choir and Houston Symphony.

Find out more here >

DURATION
100 minutes
(Part One: 50 mins; Part Two 50 mins)

CHORUS
SATB choir

SOLOISTS
Soprano, Tenor, Baritone

INSTRUMENTATION
Chamber Orchestra

YEAR OF COMPOSITION
2024

PUBLISHER
Hawes Music

SHEET MUSIC

View Score

Available from
Hawes Music
JW Pepper
Music Room
Music Shop Europe

Orchestral Parts available on hire
Email: andyberry@hawesmusic.com
Tel: +44 (0)7879 645621

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Classic FM Hall of Fame 2025

Andy Berry — Thu, 24 Apr 2025 08:09:04 +0000

Patrick’s Quanta Qualia has again featured in the Classic FM Hall of Fame and, this year, has risen 33 places to 217.

In the world’s biggest poll of classical music, it is a fantastic achievement to feature in it and Patrick is so grateful to everyone who voted for this work.

Find out more about the poll here >

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Choir & Organ

Andy Berry — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 08:47:08 +0000

In his new regular column ‘Grasping The Nettle‘ for Choir & Organ magazine, Patrick explores the tensions, transitions and timeless beauty of choir and organ music in a changing world.

Read the first article here >

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Quanta Qualia 3

Andy Berry — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 15:12:56 +0000

When Choir of the Earth (then The Self-Isolation choir) first formed during the coronavirus pandemic, thousands of voices from around the world came together to learn and record Quanta Qualia.

The music and especially the text by my brother Andrew Hawes, were all the more poignant at that time:

“O anima mea, mane! O quanta qualia conventus gaudia erunt.”
(O my soul, wait! O how great and how wonderful the joys of meeting will be)

Their first recording, alongside saxophonist Sophie Burrows, touched hearts far beyond the Choir and was even selected by Dame Louise Casey when she appeared on BBC Radio 4’s famous Desert Island Discs programme.

The piece soon became the Choir’s anthem and, as their choral family grew, they were asked to reopen recordings. Quanta Qualia 2 premiered in November 2021, with original voices, new voices and a new cello solo from renowned cellist Jiaxin Lloyd Webber.

When they held their first Hall of Fame vote in 2023, Quanta Qualia topped the chart. It retained the Number 1 spot in 2024 and now, due to popular demand, they reopened submissions to record it for a third time!

The resulting online performance saw the inclusion of thousands more voice submissions and, featuring Laura Peribañez Artero’s beautiful new cello solo, it really is beautiful.

And the behind-the-scenes video is great too, giving a glimpse of the wonderful people who make these things happen.

More info can be found on the Choir of the Earth website >

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