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Repertoire in Focus: David Fanshawe’s African Sanctus

Jun. 08, 2010

British composer David Fanshawe's African Sanctus is an unorthodox setting of the Latin Mass harmonized with traditional African music recorded by the composer on his extraordinary journeys along the Nile river. A multimedia event that utilizes Fanshawe's stunning photographs and pre-recorded sounds from his travels, African Sanctus is often choreographed and continues to see performances in the US and abroad. Taped music from Egypt, Sudan, Uganda and Kenya is heard in counterpoint with the live SATB chorus, soprano solo and instrumental ensemble (piano, percussion, drum kit and guitars). The work is composed in 13 movements which geographically reflect the composer's cross-shaped pilgrimage, from the Mediterranean to Kenya's Lake Victoria.

In 1968 Fanshawe set out to compose a piece that would combine his love of travel and adventure with recording and composition. Initially, he intended to utilize the unlikely combination of a western choir accompanying the Islamic call to prayer. Armed with a stereo tape-recorder, rucksack, camera, tapes and very little else, the journey was to be achieved by hitch-hiking. Upon stumbling on a group of men deep in prayer in mountains of west Africa, Fanshawe decided to create a musical documentary of sorts, featuring a variety of music to reflect the different people he encountered throughout his travels in Africa.

The result is a work whose impact is immediate and informs both listener and performer about African music and its relationship to Western polyphony, embracing the universal and the spiritual soul of music. Perhaps best described as a celebration, the work has been performed world-wide from Sydney to Sweden, Budapest to Brazil, Spain to Taiwan, New York to South Africa with over 1000 live performances to date.

Recent performances in 2010 include those by the University of Illinois Varsity Men's Glee Club, the Mississippi Chorus, the Catskill Chorus Society and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Other notable performances of the last ten years include those at Carnegie Hall, Europa Cantat, and national premieres in Denmark, Israel, Poland, Taiwan, Zimbabwe, Norway, France, Germany, Spain, Brazil and Hong Kong.

African Sanctus is commercially available on Silva Classics. These individual movements from African Sanctus are also available for stand-alone performance: Sanctus, Kyrie, Et In SpiritumSanctus, The Lord's Prayer and Dona Nobis Pacem.

Visit www.fanshawe.com for more on the David Fanshawe and African Sanctus.

For inquires regarding performance materials, contact rental@eamdllc.com.

Purchase the commercial recording of African Sanctushere.

David Fanshawe
African Sanctus (1977)
for soprano, SATB choir, percussion, piano and tape
optional: elec. gtr, elec. bgtr, drum kit, ethnic drums, gongs &tambourine, gospel soprano solo or children, electronic organ/keyboard
one hour

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