Bednall Make we merry

for SSAA and organ, and optional brass ensemble and timpani Commissioned by Benenden School, Make We Merry is an eight-movement piece which sets texts from the 15th to 19th centuries to a variety of choral textures with a highly characterful accompaniment. A vast array of sentiments is depicted, from quiet expectance and gentle wonder to boisterous jubilation, and the different movements provide a wonderfully paced journey through these moods. The final movement brings back motifs from the opening and grows to a thrillingly climactic ending to this exciting Christmas concert work.