Ben Ponniah

Written for a 2024 commission from Jonathan Harris for Newport Pagnell Singers, the music for Rejoice in the light came to composer Ben Ponniah in a dream. It possesses a rugged, medieval character similar to, and therefore an ideal companion for, the well-known 16th-century carol "Gaudete". The text, adapted from a 19th-century poem by Josiah Gilbert Holland ("There's a song in the air ! There's a star in the sky !") and portraying great joy at the birth of Jesus, is initially shared between the upper and lower voices before they come together, via a more lyrical verse and passages of canon, to the explosive climax of the piece.
An upbeat addition to the modern Christmas choral repertoire, with no divisi, sure to be a favourite with audiences and congregations. Instrumentation : mixed choir (SATB) a cappella.