Back in 2008 I reviewed
a recording of Will Todd’s 2003 composition, Mass in
Blue. I had some reservations about the piece but enjoyed
quite a lot of it. This new disc, produced by the London church
of St Martin-in-the-Fields, brings us a more recent jazz liturgical
venture, Todd’s Durham Jazz Evensong in what I
assume is its first recording.
The Evensong comprises settings of three Psalms, numbers 124
to 126, together with settings of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis,
the Lord’s Prayer and the final prayers and collect. I
may as well say straight out that, though it has its moments
I don’t think the music is anywhere near as interesting
as that of Mass in Blue. The main reason is that the
choral writing is much more limited. I haven’t seen a
score but quite a lot of the piece requires the choir to sing
in unison and where they do divide into parts the harmony is
much more basic than was the case with the Mass. It may well
be that the Evensong setting has been deliberately designed
to be within the compass of a decent church vocal group for
liturgical use, whereas Mass in Blue is a concert work.
In the absence of any comment in the notes that accompany the
disc or on the composer’s own website, it’s not
possible to be sure.
To a much greater extent than was the case in Mass in Blue,
the musical interest lies in the jazz band accompaniment, which
sounds to be delivered with real relish by the members of The
Will Todd Ensemble, which includes the composer on piano. By
and large, Todd’s writing is more successful overall in
the quieter passages of the Evensong, perhaps because in these
stretches of music he achieves an attractive simplicity of style.
So, for example, I find the first two of the three psalm settings,
in which the choir has what is essentially a chant over a fairly
subdued accompaniment, more attractive than the setting of Psalm
126, which is more forceful and underpinned by a heavy rock-like
drum beat. Much of the Magnificat setting is for unison choir
over a bluesy accompaniment but at the words “He hath
showed strength with his arm” Todd’s music seems
to shift up a gear and it becomes more vital and more inventive.
I liked the Nunc dimittis, especially the opening pages where
a quietly keening saxophone in the background provides a most
effective background to the choir. The concluding prayers, in
which the choir sings what sounds like four-part harmony, are
engaging.
My overall reaction to Evensong in Blue is that it’s
probably more effective either heard live in a liturgical context
or else experienced as a participant. I’m not sure it
works as well when heard simply as an audio recording, despite
the excellent, committed performance it receives here. And for
some reason I can’t quite put my finger on, the service
of Evensong just doesn’t seem to me to sit comfortably
with a jazz idiom. I wasn’t so conscious of this when
I heard Mass in Blue. Oddly, it may be because that work
is sung in Latin rather than the English that’s employed
for Evensong. Or perhaps it’s that I associate Evensong
with end-of-the-day reflection, which may account for the fact
that I find Todd’s more upbeat music doesn’t work
as well. But, as ever, I’m conscious that others may react
very differently for we’re in the realms of subjective
judgement here.
The rest of the disc is filled out with jazz arrangements by
Todd of four hymns plus three of his original works. The hymn
arrangements are something of a disappointment in that Todd
has done little more than supply a jazz accompaniment - and
I don’t know how much of these accompaniments may be improvised
- over which the hymn tune is sung in unison. Even more than
was the case with the Evensong, I suspect these hymns are designed
for congregational use, in which case a unison vocal line is
entirely appropriate, but it doesn’t make for the most
interesting CD listening. Todd’s approach is quite effective
for the more upbeat items such as ‘O When the Saints’
and the relentlessly chipper ‘Give me joy in my Heart’.
However, I don’t think it’s a case of ‘bah,
humbug’ to say that there’s a stylistic clash when
Tallis’s tune and Thomas Ken’s words are underpinned
by a jazz accompaniment in ‘Glory to Thee my God this
Night’. It just doesn’t feel right.
On the other hand, once one has got past the unaccompanied opening
trombone solo, which is too extended, Todd’s arrangement
of ‘Amazing Grace’ is really very fine indeed. In
this subdued, reflective setting interesting choral harmonies
are underpinned by a restrained, smoky piano accompaniment.
This is one of the most impressive tracks on the whole disc.
A similar style pervades Todd’s approach to Bring us,
O Lord God. We are a long, long way from Sir William Harris’s
immortal setting of the same words but Todd’s quiet, reflective
music - scored for what sounds like four-part choir and piano
- is a very valid, contemporary response to the text, one that
brings its own rewards, and the sincerity of Todd’s music
is disarming.
So, something of a mixed bag in terms of the music but the quality
of the performances is excellent. If you are interested in jazz
in the liturgy then this collection is worth investigating.
John Quinn
The Choir of St Martin-in-the-Fields 
