Listen to Martin Wolf performing Prelude on Vexilla Regis on 14th October 2006 at St John the Evangelist, Islington

Prelude on “Vexilla Regis” (2001)

I have always loved the great plainsong hymns and my prelude on Vexilla Regis is one of seven pieces I have composed based on plainsong melodies. It is the longest and most dramatic of the set and is inspired as much by the words as by the music. The opening two lines of the hymn suggest to me a long procession, hence the march-like section that comes after the opening, which presents the first three notes of the theme and an elaborated version of the entire theme. Soon the three notes appear again with mysterious chords on the swell strings. There follows a fast and agitated section which builds up to a tremendous climax, at which the notes are blazed out on the powerful reeds. The section ends on an agonised dissonance followed by an upward flourish and a triumphant chord based on a major triad. I have always thought of this passage as the agony and the ecstasy, and is intended to suggest Christ’s suffering and triumph over death. The work ends with a calm, quiet meditation on the final stage of the theme.

Duration: 7 minutes
Available from: the composer
Price: £6.00