In Spring 2023, Sir James MacMillan CBE, world-renowned conductor and composer, delivered the Von Hügel Lecture at St Edmund's College: 'Music as a Sacred Language: A Catholic Composer's Perspective'. After a nearly two-year pandemic pause, the occasion marked the relaunching of the lecture series.
On this occasion, Sir James sat in conversation with College Master, Catherine Arnold OBE, and poignantly reflected on the formative moments of musical formation in his childhood, the ever-evolving tapestry of his compositional style, and how theological reflection infused his musical meditations, from motet to symphony, and above all his profound meditation on God the Holy Spirit in Symphony No. 5 ‘Le grand Inconnu’.
Sir James was commissioned to write music for the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, on the occasion of his 2010 visit to the United Kingdom and, most recently, composed the funeral anthem 'Who Shall Separate Us?' for Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
To learn more, email Brigid Graff, VHI Executive Officer, at vhi@st-edmunds.cam.ac.uk.
Photography Credit: Tristan Selden.
@VonHugel
YouTube