Mozart’s spirited Spatzen-Messe seems to have been written in 1775 or early in 1776 (when Mozart was nineteen or twenty), and is part of the corpus of inspiring church music that he wrote for Salzburg Cathedral. The structure of the mass was dictated by the taste of the Archbishop, Hieronymus Colloredo, who wanted succinct musical settings. The skill and fluency with which Mozart achieves this is breathtaking: the distinguished Haydn scholar H C Robbins Landon draws our attention to the charming entrance of the soprano solo at ‘Quoniam’, answered by the tenor. Another moment is the subtle change in the Benedictus, after the recapitulation of the opening theme. The title ‘Sparrow-Mass’ refers to the cheeky grace-note figure heard at the ‘Pleni sunt coeli’ in the Sanctus.

John Rutter (b. 1945), For the beauty of the earth

Rutter is arguably Britain’s leading contemporary choral composer, and certainly one of the most performed.  Today’s anthem sets words by Folliott Sandford Pierpoint to a simple, yet memorable melody.  As with many of Rutter’s anthems, the accompaniment is distinctive and charming.

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), The heavens are telling the glory of God

Known as the ‘Father of the Symphony’, Haydn was one of the most important composers of the classical period, and was instrumental in the development of major genres (including the symphony and string quartet), as well as leaving a substantial body of liturgical music.  This anthem is from his oratorio The Creation (1798), a large work reputedly inspired by the oratorios of Handel, which Haydn had heard while visiting England.  The text (originally in German) was assembled from Genesis, the Psalms, and John Milton’s Paradise Lost.  Today’s anthem brightly captures the wonder of creation through lively instrumental writing, and interplay between a solo trio and the full choir