Chilcott: St John Passion

Composer Bob Chilcott’s mighty setting of words from St John’s Gospel is a dramatic yet optimistic retelling of the Passiontide story. The work combines 13th and 17th c. English poetry with the King James Bible text settings and, as with Bach’s great Passion settings, the Evangelist role is taken by the tenor soloist, providing a melodious narrative throughout. Including 5 well-known hymn texts set to new, original melodies, the work further confirms Chilcott’s status as one of the world’s most popular active choral composers. “... a successful and most impressive piece of writing by Bob Chilcott ... one would have had to be pretty stone-hearted not to have been moved.” (Seen & Heard, Review of the St John Passion’s premiere performance at Wells Cathedral)