Nico Muhly: Bright Mass With Canons

In Bright Mass With Canons, the canonical motifs are present right from the beginning and carry through almost every bar of the work.

There are echoes of early English Choral writing and abstracted sections with flurries of sound interspersed with more Choral writing, all in the most modern idioms.

Contemporary American composer Nico Muhly is a prolific writer and arranger who, at 32, is the youngest composer ever to have been commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera in New York. His oeuvre includes two operas, and many solo pieces and works for small ensemble, Orchestra, and Chorus, and he has collaborated with artists such as PhilipGlass, Björk and Sigur Rós.

In the December 2014 edition of Organists' Review, Christopher Maxim writes that 'the vocal writing frequently evokes Renaissance polyphony' and 'the language is fresh and contemporary, with much zest being added by the organ part.'