Our next project is a fascinating challenge. It is the Te Deum by the Prince Consort Albert of Saxe-Coburg Gotha. I hope you’ve all read the recording instructions on the Online Recording Project master page.
Prince Albert (1819-1861), Queen Victoria’s husband, was a gifted amateur musician. He wrote this Te Deum for performance in Westminster Abbey in 1845. I can find no record of it ever having been performed since. To this day, it remains little known. It is not even found on YouTube.
The Prince Albert Te Deum is a fun piece to sing. And, as a recording, it’s a pioneering musicological project. And, in addition to all that, we’ll be singing it live in Holy Trinity in September.
Here are all the separate parts and backing tracks, together with a full SATB Vocal Score. (Thank you to all those who took part.)
FOR THE RECORDING
If you’d like to contribute a part to the recording, you can either do it from home, or you can record with me in the Choir Room. To record at home, print your vocal score on two separate pages, and use a music stand, so we don’t hear any page turns during the recording. Sing along with the count-in as usual.
If you want to record with me in the Choir Room, let me know and we’ll make a time.
As for how to proceed, please read the recording instructions on the Online Recording Project page. If you’ve done that, please practice singing it through. It’s a complex backing track. So watch out for the many tempi fluctuations and changes (all lovingly put in by my own fair hand). I try and help you out with counts on some of the pauses. Practice it till you get it right, please. Ideally, you should sing it all in one go, like a live performance. So, since it’s about 5″30—a good length for a Te Deum!—you’ll need to sing it through several times till you get it right. But if you do a great recording with one mistake, you can just re-do that section and send me both parts clearly labelled.
NB “Sabaoth” should be sung with the “th” sound as “t”. That is sa-ba-ot (“oat” not “oath”; and with an o-vowel as in Gloria.) Please do not sing Sa-ba-yot. There is no y in the word.
Remember, if you notice any conflict between the backing track and the score, please let me know. And always follow the score.
FOR THE PERFORMANCE
Just print out your part and sing it along with the backing track until you can sing it in your sleep. If you can do that, you’ll be fine.