Decca is to record and release the official album of the Coronation on the same day.
When King Charles III & Queen Camilla are crowned at Westminster Abbey next month, the service, and pre-service music, will be recorded by the Universal Music Group label.
The album will include all music and spoken word from the global event on Saturday, May 6, and will feature an official photograph from the day as cover art.
This marks the first time ever a recording of a Coronation ceremony will be available globally to stream and download on the day of the service itself.
The complete album, to be available digitally on the day, will be over four hours long. The physical version of the album (featuring the entire service and all new commissions) will then be available in stores globally from May 15. A special deluxe CD and vinyl edition will follow later in the year.
Decca previously released a recording of the wedding service of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, which was also released on the same day.
The Coronation next month is to feature a range of musical styles and performers blending tradition, heritage and ceremony with new musical voices. Among the performances are 12 newly composed pieces of music, showcasing talent from across the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
The King has commissioned the new music and shaped and selected the musical programme for the service. Six orchestral commissions, five choral commissions and one organ commission, have been written by British composers whose work includes classical, sacred, film, television and musical theatre.
Between them, the 12 composers have over 80 BAFTA, Oscar, Grammy, Tony, Olivier, Golden Globe, Emmy, World Soundtrack Award and ASCAP awards and nominations.
Included in these commissions is the Coronation Anthem, a brand new work composed for the occasion by Lord Lloyd Webber, entitled Make A Joyful Noise. A separate studio recording of this work will be released on May 6, as well as the live recording from the ceremony itself.
Decca have a longstanding and proud association with the British royal family
Tom Lewis & Laura Monks
The studio recording features The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, The Choir of Westminster Abbey, The Fanfare Trumpeters of the Royal Air Force and the Abbey sub-organist Peter Holder, conducted by organist and Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey, Andrew Nethsingha.
Performers include Sir Bryn Terfel, Pretty Yende, Roderick Williams and Alis Huws.
The Official Coronation Album will be produced by Anna Barry, who has produced over 500 recordings over 35 years, including the wedding of the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011 and The Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018 (both issued by Decca). Barry has also worked on recordings by Andrew Lloyd Webber, José Carreras, Elina Garanca, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Andrea Bocelli, the Sistine Chapel Choir, Lorin Maazel, Sir John Eliot Gardiner and many more.
Anna Barry said: “This will be a truly historic recording, capturing a glorious range of music from across centuries and continents, reflecting the world-wide interest in our traditions, covering multiple locations in the wonderful acoustic of Westminster Abbey, and involving an unprecedented technical plan to present the entire experience to the world on the day itself.”
Decca Records has also released commemorative albums such as Her Majesty The Queen Mother’s 100th Birthday Celebrations (2000) and the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (2012).
Tom Lewis and Laura Monks, co-presidents of Decca Label Group, said: “Coronation services have been taking place since the 11th century. Never before has a complete recording been made available to global audiences to stream and download on the same day. Decca have a longstanding and proud association with the British royal family and we are delighted to be once again making recorded music history together.”
With this release, Decca will be supporting the Royal British Legion and Age UK charities.
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