Lament, Op. 211

John Henderson, probably Swindon's only full-time musicologist, acts as Honorary Librarian and Archivist to the Royal School of Church Music, a post he has held since 1995, and he serves as organist and choirmaster of Wroughton Parish Church.

He was trained at Magdalen College School, Oxford and is a medical graduate of St. John's College in Cambridge. He was formerly the senior partner of the NHS General Practice in Fairford, Gloucestershire. He retired from medicine in 1992 and lives in Old Town, Swindon. He describes himself as a 'train-spotter cum hoarder' of organ music and his personal library of 60,000 pieces of organ music supplies source material to many performers and recording companies world-wide.

Many of the fine and rare works that have I have uploaded recently were given to me by JH. THANK YOU, John! He is one of members here "FRSCMJohn".

John was awarded the ARSCM (Associate of the Royal School of Church Music) in 1996 and named as an FRSCM (Fellow of the RSCM) in 2016.

He is the author/co-author of several books, his most famous being "The Dictionary of Organ Composers".

"Lament" is dated "Swindon 22nd October 2015). It is a moving sketch, full of color and intensity.

The work begins with the tolling of a deep bell, above which clouds of harmonies rise like incense. The melody appears, played upon the Solo clarinet, and the effect reminded me of something like a chant, perhaps a "Nunc dimittis". The first section dissolves away, and a more impassioned movement takes us to the climax, featuring parallel chords marked "Stringendo." The pinnacle of the piece is reached, but we don't linger there too long, as sounds and textures disappear and fall away, leaving us at the end with that same foundational bell from which we began our journey of lament.

The score is attached below, as well as a photo of John Henderson, and two pictures of Wroughton Parish Church where he is organist and director of music.