An interview with composer Gareth Treseder

Gareth Treseder works regularly with the Monteverdi Choir, Polyphony, the BBC Singers, the Eric Whitacre Singers and London Voices. He composed the carol, ‘En Natus Est Emanuel, Dominus’ for Joanna Tomlinson which was premiered by Farnham Youth Choir in 2022 and which the Senior Choir performed again at their Christmas concert on 7th December 2024.

Gareth Treseder

Singer and choral composer

How did you come to compose ‘En Natus Est Emanuel, Dominus’’?

When she was Artistic Director of FYC, Joanna Tomlinson was kind enough to programme several of my works for the Senior Choir. I was keen to write a piece as a thank you to Jo, and also to showcase FYC's extraordinary musical talents. I wanted to write a joyful piece that celebrates Christmas and that I would have enjoyed singing when I was a teenager.

Why did you choose this text?

‘En Natus Est Emanuel, Dominus’ tells the story of Christ’s birth with joy, rather than solemnity, and this was my objective in writing this piece. I want the singers to feel as though they are having a party when they sing it! Also, the English translation scans almost identically to the original Latin text, so choirs singing this piece have a choice between the two languages.

What was your journey towards becoming a choral singer and composer?

I was lucky enough to sing in Swansea's St Paul's Parish Church choir for twelve years, starting as a six-year-old chorister. The choir's director, the late Dr Ian Graham, taught me music theory, piano and singing, which in turn provided lessons for numerous life skills like organisation, preparation, and hard work. I then went to the University of Bristol to study music and continued singing with choirs there, as well as being a Lay Clerk at Bristol Cathedral. (Lay Clerks are professional singers in cathedral choirs). That’s really where I learned about the importance of writing music that choirs would be able to pick up and sing quickly. There is rarely enough time for rehearsal for a choral evensong, so I really learned to write music that could be easily sung.

Which composers inspire you?

I love Stanford, J.S. Bach (obviously), Haydn, Mozart, and Poulenc - their music seems to me to be divinely inspired. Their sound worlds are extremely focussed, but nonetheless each produces a musical language that is easy to access.

Do you have a favourite Christmas tune?

While I love the famous version of ‘Away in a Manger’ by William Kirkpatrick, there is a setting arranged by Reginald Jacques of a traditional tune from Normandy in France that I love. I can hear it over and over again - a valuable thing in a Christmas carol.

I also love ‘The Angel Gabriel’, more for nostalgic reasons. I remember opening the associated carol book as a child - they were always covered in wrapping paper to protect them - and I remember singing this one with a smile.

What will your Christmas look like?

I’ll be working - singing - nearly every day in December. I am fortunate that several of my works will be premiered this Christmas. One of which will involve me singing in the premiere itself. ‘Shepherds in the Fields Abiding’ will be performed in Swansea's Brangwyn Hall by the BBC National Chorus of Wales - a choir with whom I once sang as a Choral Scholar whilst studying at Cardiff’s Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. The performance will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. Christmas Day itself will be a family occasion as I will be celebrating with my wife and three children.

You can find out more about Gareth here: www.garethtreseder.com

Something Old, Something New

 Farnham Youth Choir’s first concert of the new season was held at the lovely church of St Alban’s in Hindhead on Sat 15th Oct in front of a full and appreciative audience! This was a new venue for the choir which performs more frequently in Farnham.

The evening began with choir members coming out to the audience members and greeting them, before starting a "Festive Alleluia" in an almost flash-mob style. Once regular choir positions had been resumed, we were treated to sacred music from 16th century up to 20th century, as well as pieces involving choir actions such as clapping in a Spanish style for "Yo Le Canto" and looking fearsome and warlike for "De Bello Gallico".

The choir was performing for the first time under the direction of Joanna Tomlinson who began regular rehearsals with them only 7 weeks ago. It also welcomed a new pianist, Matthew Rickard, who was given particular opportunities to shine in his accompaniments for Holst’s piece “To Agni” and the Spiritual, “Joshua”.

Many of the pieces performed during the evening were familiar works sung in previous years, but the audience were also treated to new pieces learned only in the past few weeks. The 14 new members who joined the choir in September performed confidently, having learned and memorised their parts in such a short period of time.

Another new feature of the concert was the inclusion of some more contemporary songs, including “Make You Feel My Love” by the recently announced Nobel Laureate for literature, Bob Dylan. The audience were sent on their way home with a lively rendition of the song “Happy”- appropriate for conveying the feelings of choir and audience alike, after this first outing of the season!

Laura Brown, director of The Octavian Singers.