Bernard Hughes: Epiphany

Epiphany was commissioned by the Thomas Tallis Society in London, to mark Phillipa John’s 50th anniversary with the choir. The text is by her son, Hywel John, and it draws on memories of family singing, moves from dreaming to wakefulness, a wakefulness marked by a burst of joyful singing. The music starts with the word ‘epiphany’ sung as a mantra, over which melodic phrases emerge, eventually building into a chordal climax.