John Rutter's Magnificat is a joyous celebration of the Virgin Mary, inspired by feast-day festivities in countries such as Spain, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. Following the example set by Bach, the Magnificat text is extended, incorporating the fifteenth-century English poem 'Of a Rose', the prayers 'Sancta Maria', and the 'Sanctus' (set to the Gregorian chant of the Missa cum jubilo). The full scores, for orchestra or chamber ensemble, are now available on sale for the first time in handsome, cloth-bound editions, and the newly set orchestral parts are available on hire.
John Rutter studied music at Clare College, Cambridge and first came to notice as a composer and arranger of Christmas carols and other choral pieces during those early years; today his compositions, including such concert-length works as Requiem,Magnificat,Mass of the Children,The Gift of Life, and Visionsare performed around the world. John edits the Oxford Choral Classics series,and, with Sir David Willcocks, co-edited four volumes of Carols for Choirs.In 1983 he formed his own choir The Cambridge Singers, with whom he has made numerous recordings on the Collegium Records label, and he appears regularly in several countries as a guest conductor and choral ambassador.John holds a Lambeth Doctorate in Music in 2007 was awarded a CBE for services to music.In September 2023, he received the Ivors Academy Fellowship, and in 2024 he was knighted in the Kings Birthday Honours.
