Tuesday 28 September, 7.30pm In the Beginning Was the Word: A Concert in Celebration of the Saint John’s Bible.
St Martin-in-the-Fields will host an evening of music, words and images and music celebrating the Saint John’s Bible, the first handwritten illuminated Bible commissioned since the advent of the printing press. Described by Smithsonian Magazine as ‘one of the most extraordinary undertakings of our time’ the Bible is being created by a team of artists and scribes under the artistic direction of Donald Jackson. St Martin-in-the-Fields has on display the only Heritage Edition of the Saint John’s Bible in UK.
The Saint John’s Bible is a union of an ancient Benedictine tradition with the technology and vision of today, illuminating the Word of God for a new millennium of multiple cultures and multiple faiths. On Tuesday 28 September at 7.30pm St Martin-in-the-Fields, well-known for its musical tradition, architecture and welcoming people from all faiths, will celebrate the Saint John’s Bible with an evening of music, words and projections. This special event takes place on Tuesday 28 September with an evening programme emulating the project’s synthesis of old and new, ancient and modern with readings given by Donald Jackson, Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg and Nicholas Holtam, Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Music sung by the Choir of St Martin-in-the-Fields was selected by Director of Music Andrew Earis and includes works on a Biblical theme by composers including Carson Cooman, Jonathan Dove, James Macmillan, Morton Lauridsen, Benjamin Britten and Eric Whitacre. These were chosen, Earis says, for their “modern take on an ancient text which nicely compliments the same duality in the Saint John’s Bible”. Throughout the event, in a design created by the video designer Nina Dunn, the Bible’s striking contemporary images will be projected against the arching Baroque splendour of St Martin’s 18th century ceiling while award winning artist Shirazeh Houshiary’s East Window forms a backdrop to the whole. “The continuous process of remaining open and accepting of what may reveal itself through hand and heart on a crafted page is the closest I have ever come to God.” Donald Jackson, Saint John’s Bible. The full music programme is: Carson Cooman - In the Beginning was the Word Jonathan Dove - Ecce Beatam Lucem Tarik O’Regan - Locus Iste Philip Moore - Lo! God is Here Benjamin Britten - Te Deum in C Morton Lauridsen - O Magnum Mysterium Eric Whitacre - Lux Aurumque James MacMillan - Christus Vincit Jonathan Dove - Seek him that Maketh the Seven Stars Choir of St Martin-in-the-Fields Martin Ford Organ Andrew Earis Conductor Tickets priced at £18 £15 £9 are available from St Martin-in-the-Field Box Office 020 7766 1100 www.smitf.org Notes: St Martin-in-the-Fields has been given the only Heritage Edition of the St John’s Bible in the United Kingdom. It was a gift from St John’s Abbey made possible by the generosity of Dan and Katherine Whalen. The Saint John’s Bible was commissioned in 1998 by the Roman Catholic Benedictine monks of St John’s Abbey and University in Collegeville, Minnesota. It is being created by a team of scribes, artists and craftspeople in a scriptorium in Monmouthshire under the artistic direction of Donald Jackson, one of the world’s foremost calligraphers and the scribe to HM Queen Elizabeth II’s Crown Office and the House of Lords. Measuring more than two feet by three feet, the Bible parallels that of its medieval predecessors, written on vellum, using quills, natural handmade inks, hand-ground pigments and gold leaf while incorporating modern themes, images and technology of the 21st century. The creation of the Bible continues the Benedictine tradition of copying and caring for sacred texts. After starting her professional life in the fields of design for Film and Broadcast, Nina Dunn specialises in integrated projection design and content production for Theatre, live events and out of home communication. In November last year, she designed projections for Die Frau Ohne Schatten at the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg, which received 4 stars from the Financial Times which, in addition to repertory performances, will be touring to Ljubiana, Tokyo and Edinburgh over the next twelve months. Other projects for Theatre include Charles Peattie and Russell Taylor's Alex, The Stage Play - a one-man show with the remaining cast and set provided by projection (Assistant Animator); the Broadway and Seattle incarnations of Stephen Sondheim's Musical Sunday In The Park With George; The 2008-9 European tour of Richard O'Brien's Musical Rocky Horror Show and Richard Wagner's Ring des Nibelungen Opera cycle at the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg and Royal Opera House, London in 2009 (Associate Video Designer). Recent live events include projection design and content production for the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Doha, where surfaces included two suspended heliospheres with projection on two sides and four circular mats, all synchronises with each other. She also provided a projected courtyard installation for Hermes in the Musee De La Chasse in Paris for a private event. Upcoming projects include Armstrong & Miller's comedy tour, starting in September, and visuals for a hair fashion show in Paris in November. Nina was educated at Edinburgh University, Goldsmiths College and the Universitaet der Kuenste, Berlin and is based in London. The Choir of St Martin-in-the-Fields sings at the Parish Eucharist and Choral Evensong each Sunday and this is complemented by extra seasonal services - particularly at during Advent, Christmas, Holy Week and Easter; several concerts per year both at St Martin's as part of the renowned concert series there and at external venues of note; and a schedule of regular broadcasts on BBC Radio and Television. The Choir have recently recorded a CD, 'Christmas at St Martin-in-the-Fields'.
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