Knut Nystedt Photo: Public Domain
Komm, süsser Tod. Komm, sel'ge Ruh'. Komm führe mich in Friede.
Come, sweet death. Come blessed rest. Come and lead me to peace.
Knut Nystedt (1915-2014) was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway, and grew up in a Christian home where hymns and classical music were an important part of everyday life. His major compositions for choir and vocal soloists are mainly based on texts from the Bible or sacred themes. Old church music, especially Palestrina and Gregorian chants, had a major influence on his compositions.
This piece is an arrangement of the first line of Bach's four-part setting of the funeral song 'Komm, süßer Tod'. It uses a technique known as ‘phasing’ - patterns sung by different groups together which gradually fall out of synch (the aural equivalent of a blurry photograph) before coming back into focus again.
Recorded in Wellington Cathedral of St. Paul by RNZ Concert
Producer/sound engineer: Darryl Stack
