‘January’ is movement 1 from Twelve Trees – a collection of pieces celebrating trees native to the British Isles by Katy Lavinia Cooper, with words by Catriona Downie.
January commemorates what is surely the most influential tree in the history of thought, Sir Isaac Newton’s apple tree which still grows in the garden of his birthplace, Woolsthorpe Manor in Lincolnshire. In 1666 it was from this tree that, by his own account, Newton saw the apple that inspired his theory of gravity fall. The words here also borrow from several Apple Wassails, traditionally sung in midwinter to bless the trees and encourage a healthy crop. The music is based on such a wassail. The melody references a traditional wassail collected from William Crockford at Bratten, Somerset in 1 906.
Twelve trees was commissioned to mark 60 years of Sing for Pleasure and first performed at Summer School 2024. Words by Catriona Downie and music by Katy Lavinia Cooper (O Lux Beata). A collection of twelve pieces celebrating trees native to the British Isles and drawing inspiration from history, folklore and traditional music.
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