John Duggan

Ave Verum

Ave verum was commissioned early in 2011 by Edward Rowntree for the birthday of his father, John Rowntree, director of music at Douai Abbey in the UK. My aim was to write a piece both short and simple, suitable for regular liturgical use. There are, of course, many wonderful settings of this text already, not least those by William Byrd and Edward Elgar, both of which I sang as a boy. In this instance I felt their presence as a fellowship and, having their music in my head while writing, I was encouraged rather than daunted. In fact, if you listen with this in mind, you may hear a phrase or two in homage to the great masters. - John Duggan

An inspiring selection of new works from a range of contemporary composers, the Novello New Choral Series offers pieces for all types of choirs, including sacred and secular works from simple, four-part settings to more expansive, yet accessible, repertoire in an exciting variety of styles.

Born in 1963, John Duggan was a chorister at Westminster Cathedral and studied music at Oxford. While still a boy, he dreamed of writing in the great European choral tradition of Victoria, Tallis and Palestrina. His vocal music has delighted both singers and audiences across Europe and the United States, and he composes regularly for film and dance. He has composed for a number of choirs including Commotio, Westminster Cathedral Choir, the Hildegard Choir and Sospiri, and has written commissions for the Edington Music Festival, Crossover Intergenerational Dance Group, Oxford Youth Dance and The Oxford-Grenoble Association. John regularly performs as a singer and choral director and works as a recording engineer and producer. He has recently been appointed as a Creative Arts Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford.