Howells, Herbert (Farrington) - King David (SSAATTBB & Piano)

for mixed choir (SSAATTBB) & piano
Text: English (Walter de la Mare)
Duration: 4'30''
Difficulty: 3/5


This new arrangement of Howells’s 1919 solo song transfers the composer’s stirring harmonies and masterful word-painting to a choral texture. Howells’s music, especially his considerable output of sacred choral music, is considered some of the finest written in the 20th century, and this arrangement captures the part-writing and intricate textures so iconic in his music.


This choral arrangement has been supported by a grant from the Herbert Howells Society.


The original song for voice & piano is also available from Boosey & Hawkes, ISMN 979-0-060-03341-4.


Iain Farrington
Iain Farrington has an exceptionally busy and diverse career as a pianist, organist, composer and arranger. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music and St John’s College, Cambridge University.


Iain has performed as a solo pianist, accompanist, chamber musician and organist at the major venues in the UK, including the Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, the Purcell Room, the Proms 2007, the Royal Opera House, and abroad in South Africa, Japan, Jordan and across Europe. He has worked with some of the country’s leading musicians, including Bryn Terfel, Lesley Garrett, John Mark Ainsley, the Royal Ballet, the BBC Singers, Sir Simon Rattle and Sir Colin Davis.


As a creative musician, Iain has arranged over one hundred works from Mozart to Gershwin, and his compositions have been performed in the USA, New Zealand, Sweden, and across the UK.