Welcome

 

Part of the AHRC/ESRC-funded Religion and Society Programme, this project investigates the spiritual possibilities of the present by rescuing a neglected poem, one of the great epics of English literature, Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene.

It involves Royal Holloway, University of London; the University of Oxford; Manchester Cathedral;The College of St George, Windsor Castle; The Windsor Festival; Shakespeare’s Globe; Poet in the City; Cumberland Lodge; Bishop David Brown School; and George Mitchell School. 

And it will be of interest to poets, writers and readers as well as scholars and those of all faiths and none, who hunger for beauty, meaning and value. To find out more, read About the Project.

 

 

News

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The new poetic liturgy arising from the project, together with some reflections by major writers, is due to be published later this year by Continuum Books. A description of the book and the table of contents follow.

 

Redcrosse: remaking religious poetry for today’s world

Do poetry and criticism matter in today’s world?
How can the poetry of the past help us tackle the changing nature of religious faith and national identity?

This book explores the creation of Redcrosse: a new poetic liturgy for St George’s Day and a unique collaborative work written by the critic Ewan Fernie, the theologian Andrew Shanks and the major contemporary poets Jo Shapcott, Michael Symmons Roberts and Andrew Motion. The authors of the poem together with other leading writers - including John Milbank, Salley Vickers and Sarah Apetrei - reflect on the creation of the liturgy and its central inspiration, Edmund Spenser’s epic Renaissance poem, The Faerie Queene, as well as on its two premieres in St George’s Chapel, Windsor and Manchester Cathedral, and its sometimes controversial public reception.

Including the full text of Redcrosse itself, the volume triumphantly shows that a new poetic work really can address some of the most pressing concerns of our time.

Contents

Contributors

Acknowledgements

1. Reflections
Ewan Fernie, ‘Through the Red Cross’
Salley Vickers, ‘For Real’
Andrew Shanks, ‘A Desire for the Impossible’
Michael Symmons Roberts, ‘The Poet’s Tale’
Sarah Apetrei, ‘Fight the Good Fight?’
John Milbank, ‘From Romance to Ritual: Redcrosse and Spenser’s Faerie Queene’

2. Redcrosse
A New Celebration of England and St George by Ewan Fernie, Michael Symmons Roberts, Jo Shapcott and Andrew Shanks, and featuring a new poem from Andrew Motion.

 

Music Commission

Eminent composer Tim Garland has received a major commission to compose music for the Faerie Queene Liturgy Project which will be performed by Acoustic Triangle and the Choir of Royal Holloway in St George's Chapel Windsor and Manchester Cathedral.

A note from Tim Garland on his new composition 'The Faerie Queene Canticles':

Four poems from different contemporary writers, all personalising one of the four elements, are the settings for these songs. Each was written also with the story of St. George in mind, and his trials through the material world. The recurring theme of St. George is heard on the soprano sax. Although the songs can be sung with piano or organ, the choir is ideally accompanied by musicians with improvising skills. Some of the unpredictable, spontaneous and even vulnerable qualities of our central character (who really is representing us all as we either battle or befriend the elements,) can have animated life amidst the narrative of the choir. The over-arching message of the poems is one of unity, appreciated through our common frailty and fallibility. For me it is not a mono-religious work when out of its context in a service, but a chance for a second life for four beautiful and thought provoking poems which question, as much as they celebrate, our higher aspirations. I hope this is reflected in the music I felt moved to write.

A special concert version of Tim Garland's music will form part of a mixed concert by Acoustic Triangle and the Royal Holloway Choir at 7.30pm on Friday 8th July 2011 in Romsey Abbey, Hampshire. This is a Romsey Arts Festival event, and tickets are available from Romsey Tourist Information Centre on 01794 512987.

To access our archive of News, please click here.