Roger Sayer writes:
THE death of James Whitbourn brings a huge loss not just to the music world, but to church music in particular. He was a conductor, composer, producer, broadcaster, and educator.
Having studied at Magdalen College, Oxford, he began his career at the BBC, for which he was the editor of Radio 3’s Choral Evensong from 1990 to 2001. It was during this time that, like many of my cathedral colleagues — I was the Assistant Director and then Director of Music at Rochester Cathedral — I got to know him. James had a real knack of picking out the things that could easily be fixed, and tactfully leaving the things that were best left unsaid. He had my greatest respect.
He also, for more than 30 years, produced the BBC broadcasts of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols from King’s College, Cambridge, on Christmas Eve, but was always back in the congregation for the midnight eucharist at Rochester. Being at home with his family was so important to him.
It was after one of these services that he proposed a new Mass with a difference. It was his Missa Carolae — a Mass based on well-known carols, in which the congregation could participate, also. Commissioned for the cathedral’s 1400th anniversary, it became a regular fixture at midnight mass.
It is a classic example of James’s numerous choral works, which often incorporated some kind of instrumentation or orchestration; there was often symphonic scoring. In the Missa Carolae, scored for two choirs, organ, fife (or piccolo), brass, and drums, James wrote for the Rochester building, the fiery organ, and the magic of Christmas expectation. The intention was to fill a cathedral packed to capacity, and cross the divide of the pulpitum screen so that the congregation, wherever they were, would feel supported and uplifted.
The choreography and use of the building were inspired, and had an almost cinematic feel. The opening sequence of antiphonal plainchant between two choirs and a magical procession to the manger remain to this day as one of the best memories of my time there. The Introit and Kyrie, in particular, had a sense of drama. There was a timeless effect, as the haunting sound of the fife emerged from the silence and darkness, to capture the innocence of birth, as well as the shepherds’ song. The overall effect was quite visceral, you could almost “feel” the drums, which also served to keep the congregation in time.
Other commissions for James included evening canticles for King’s College, Cambridge, first performed on Easter Day 2005, and “Among the Angels”, a setting of words by Thomas Traherne, composed for the enthronement of Nicholas Holtam as Bishop of Salisbury, in 2011. James’s music was also used to mark national and international events, including an appearance as the BBC’s title music for the funeral of the Queen Mother.
James’s works have been performed around the world, and his last work, perhaps fittingly, Requiem, orchestrated by John Rutter, is to receive its première on 13 April in the Carnegie Hall, New York.
Many of his works have been recorded, notably by the choir of Clare College, Cambridge. As composer, conductor, and producer, he had no fewer than four GRAMMY nominations to his name. Ensembles that have performed under him include the BBC Philharmonic and the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields. His Tavener recording with the London-based The Choir received a Gramophone Awards nomination.
James was committed to developing music and musicians. He was a member of the Faculty of Music in the University of Oxford and Director of Music at both St Edmund Hall and Harris Manchester College. He was also a senior research fellow of St Stephen’s House.
Life was an incredibly busy one for James, and I was privileged to know him not just as a producer, conductor, and composer, but also as a chorister father and a friend.
He was very kind to me and found opportunities for me to play the organ. One lovely moment was to play for the christening of his son, Simeon, at Candlemas, in his local church in Kent. His daughter Hannah joined the newly formed girls’ choir at Rochester, and he was so proud of her. It was humbling to have him as a choir parent who quietly supported the music. My daughter and his daughter were friends, and I observed at first hand his love and devotion as a father and husband.
The world of music, and especially church music, has much to thank him for. We grieve for him, and offer loving prayers for his devoted family: his wife, Alison; his children, Hannah, Naomi, and Simeon; his parents, Philip and Anne; and his sister, Katherine.
Dr James Whitbourn died on 12 March, aged 60.
