An Anthem for All Saints Day

One of the Anthems that impressed and moved me greatly when I first encountered the choral music of the Anglican Church is "Faire is the Heaven" by William Harris (1883-1973). This work for double chorus takes a 16th century text and sets it within the rich harmonic language of high-Romantic Era choral writing. The text of the Anthem is a portion of An Hymn of Heavenly Beauty, by the Elizabethan poet Edmund Spenser (c.1552-1599). Altogether, it is a glorious depiction of the blessedness of the saints in heaven.

Faire is the heaven
Faire is the heaven where happy soules have place
In full enjoyment of felicitie;
Whence they do still behold the glorious face
Of the Divine, Eternall Majestie;

Yet farre more faire be those bright Cherubins
Which all with golden wings are overdight.
And those eternall burning Seraphins
Which from their faces dart out fiery light;

Yet fairer than they both and much more bright
Be the Angels and Archangels
Which attend on God's owne person without rest or end.
These then in faire each other farre excelling
As to the Highest they approach more neare,
Yet is that Highest farre beyond all telling

Fairer than all the rest which there appeare
Though all their beauties joynd together were;
How then can mortal tongue hope to expresse
The image of such endlesse perfectnesse?

There are many good recordings of this Anthem, but I recommend the recording of the same name by the Cambridge Singers, directed by John Rutter. (Collegium Records, CD107-COL).