for mixed choir (SATB) & organ
Text: English (St Thomas Aquinas, trans James Quinn)
Duration: 3'00''
Difficulty: 2/5


Composed in 1980 and revised in 2010 this is a setting of verses from Aquinas’s Pange lingua in modern English translation. The choral writing is appropriately hymn-like, with one a cappella passage. The organ part comprises a flowing two-part canonic texture over a very simple and sparse pedal part, accessible to experienced and 'reluctant' organists alike. Suitable for intermediate standard choirs.


Original accompaniment for oboe & viola available as a free download.


James MacMillan
Born in Scotland in 1959, James MacMillan studied at Edinburgh and Durham Universities and now lives in Glasgow. His early successes as a composer in the 1990s included The Confession of Isobel Gowdie, premiered at the BBC Proms, and the percussion concerto Veni, Veni, Emmanuel written for Evelyn Glennie. MacMillan has a special interest in choral composition, ranging from simple liturgical settings for use in church services, to major works for choir and orchestra including Seven Last Words from the Cross, Quickening and St John Passion. His music has been championed and recorded by leading choirs and vocal groups including Cappella Nova, Polyphony, The Hilliard Ensemble, The Sixteen, Westminster Cathedral Choir and the Netherlands Chamber Choir. With their Gaelic inflections and characteristic mixing of ancient and modern, his works have also proved popular with amateur chamber choirs around the world.