The King Shall Rejoice was commissioned by the Dean and Chapter of Westminster to mark the sixtieth anniversary of Her Majesty The Queen's coronation.Setting powerful and optimistic words from Psalm 21 Chilcott establishes a celebratory mood from the outset with dancing 6/8 rhythms and jubilant ringing chords. The voices soon divide into two choirs creating a striking antiphonal effect and the music moves through sections of slower more sustained writing in 4/4.The second half of the work sets an adapted version of the psalm text famously used by William Byrd - 'O Lord make thy servant Elizabeth our Queen rejoice in thy strength' - beforecoming to a buoyant and triumphant close with the final 'amen'.
