Willan 100 recital
Dear SMM Community,
The 110th part of my online organ recital is here, and this is a particularly special instalment: a recital celebrating the centenary of Healey Willan's arrival at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene, featuring Willan's Five preludes on plainchant melodies, played on the Healey Willan Memorial Organ at SMM.
Healey Willan arrived at SMM 100 years ago on December 4. We will be celebrating Willan's work with a year of events, starting with this recital.
Claimed by some as Healey Willan’s (1880-1968) greatest set of hymn preludes, his Five preludes on plainchant melodies were written in 1950 after commission from Oxford University Press, and published in 1951. Dedicated to Charles Peaker, he also performed the premiere of the set on 14 October 1950 in honour of Willan’s 70th birthday. Gregorian chant was an important part of Willan’s life, and his love of it is clearly evident in his treatment of the various melodies—from the dulcet tones of Ecce jam noctis to the thundering final strains of Urbs Hierusalem beata.
With best wishes,
Andrew Adair
Director of Music