Gaudeamus omnes - Joseph Phibbs

"Composed in 2009, this short, celebratory  introit was the first of several unaccompanied works I composed for Matthew Owens and the Wells Cathedral Girl Choristers. The text ("Let us all rejoice") exists in a number of versions, and here honours "all the saints, at whose solemnly the angels rejoice". The texture, essentially imitative, is governed by a syncopated melodic phrase which gives way to softer material in the middle section. The return of the opening idea drives the piece towards a broad, jubilant conclusion. The work was arranged for SSATB in 2010 for the Exon Singes Festival, the upper parts unaltered. "