A Joyful And Heartfelt Première Of Animals
Sunday, 13th of September 2026
What a joyful and heartfelt première!
A première is always a bit nerve-wracking. No one has heard it before. Even in my head, it's not the same as a live performance. The St Giles Consort really got inside the music in rehearsal, building the chords until they 'pinged' and singing in the flowing melodic lines until they were second nature.
Animals is a set of part-songs, with words by poet Euan Tait, where each animal has a character – the singing butterfly, the rescued spaniel, the peace of the owl and the running racehorse.
Butterfly (Singing) is joyful in a burst of life. Euan Tait's words celebrate the exuberance of singing. Dominic McGonigal's music brings it to life with a beautiful, flowing setting, building the textures of different combinations of voices. This is full of the joy of life.
Spaniel (Rescue) is lost, dying, but found and saved. Euan Tait's words are of hope for an animal abandoned. Dominic McGonigal's music brings it to life with a beautiful, simple setting, allowing each of the five voices to shine through, coming together for a glorious climax as the spaniel is saved. The final 'You found life' is an expansion of the opening 'I found you'.
Owl (Peace) is at peace and so are we. Euan Tait has captured the serenity of the owl and Dominic McGonigal's music matches that with pleasing harmonies and a calm melodic line.
Racehorse (Running) is just happy to be alive, running for joy. Joy is the key word in Euan Tait's poetry, brought to life by Dominic McGonigal's music. There's a pulsating rhythm running through, with different textures from the different combinations of voices. It ends with pure joy.
Animals is scored for five voices (SSATB) and can be sung by a consort or a choir.
Here is Owl (Peace) sung at the première by St Giles Consort.
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