motet notes - Britten

Britten’s 1961 Jubilate Deo, a setting of Psalm 100, was composed for St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. It is a spirited, joyous work. The organ music is filled with runs and detached, staccato notes, almost like birdsong. The choral parts are presented antiphonally, with sopranos and tenors answered by the altos and basses. The lines are almost unison, but the upper voice in each pairing has a slightly more ornamented line. A middle section is more hushed and introspective, but the joyful music quickly returns and the piece ends with a brilliant “Amen.”