It’s a song/anthem all about St. Cuthbert.

This video tells the story of the song on its own, but if you want more information, read on…

Inspiration
It’s a song inspired by the story of St. Cuthbert from his home on one of the Farne Islands in Northumberland to being part of the community of monks in Lindisfarne Priory and then to his body finally being carried to the site of Durham Cathedral, where he still remains. There is a shrine in Durham Cathedral and a statue (The Journey) in the city, by Fenwick Lawson, of his coffin being carried by several monks. There is also a statue of St. Cuthbert by Lawson, amongst the ruins of Lindisfarne Priory.

Title
The title of the piece refers to the birds that Cuthbert cared for in Northumberland, and he is often depicted with birds in stained glass windows. Aves Beati Cuthberti (birds of sacred Cuthbert) also specifically refers to the eider duck, which is found along the coast of Northumberland as well as elsewhere. Other local names for eiders are Cuthbert’s ducks or Cuddy ducks.

Music
The song has three distinct parts: a processional plainchant at the beginning and end, and a hymn in the middle.

When I was first composing this song in 2005, there was an information sheet at the Shrine of St. Cuthbert in Durham Cathedral, which said that on St. Cuthbert’s Feast Day (March 20th) the lid of his coffin would be raised, whereupon bells attached to it would ring and the monks from all around the cathedral complex would would come rushing to the shrine to worship together. This information sheet is no longer there (in 2026), but I was inspired by the story to include bells and the illusion of monks singing their prayer as they rushed to the shrine, and being slightly out of synch with each other as they did so.

The plainchant consists of a short, three-phrase pattern using the title as lyrics. There’s much use of melisma, and as I said, a hetererophonic texture and processional accompaniment music.

The hymn has a simple melody and a dance-like feel:

Performances
I first wrote this song in 2005 for a primary school production, Winter Wear, at Grangetown Primary School in Sunderland, in which each class explored a different part of the River Wear flowing from the northern Pennines to the North Sea in Sunderland. The River Wear also flows through Durham. Mrs Jarvis’s Year 2 class’s “stopping off point” was Durham and they told Cuthbert’s story. They recreated the funeral of Cuthbert in his final resting place, exploring through dance and music, the elements of this song.

During this procession they also stopped every now and then, as dictated by the music to pose in a gesture or shape of sorrow, or praise, or worship. (You can see a bit of this on the video at the top of the page.) Once the coffin reached the main stage, they sang the hymn and danced around the coffin using movements and dance inspired by birds they’d observed.

You can read more about the Winter Wear Project here.

SATB Version
Also in 2005, I was asked by Colin Start, the MD of Alnwick and District Choral Society, for three works with a north-east flavour for their next concert. I made arrangements of Aves Beati Cuthberti and another Winter Wear song, Four Pence A Day for him, as well as composing a brand new song, The Log On The Beach. ADCS performed all three works, and later, in 2006, Rock Festival Choir also performed this SATB version.
The hymn and final plainchant sections of this SATB version, feature a bird-like vocal flourish in the accompaniment (rather than the bird-dancing of the 6 year-olds!).

Rock Festival Choir also performed the work again in 2019, and that is the recording you can hear at the top of the page, complete with audience clicks and whirrs.

If you’d like scores of the SATB version, click here.

SSAA version
In 2014 I was asked by the music teachers at a girls’ high school in New Zealand, whether I had anything for their choir and string orchestra. I adapted one or two pieces for this combination, including Aves Beati Cuthberti. I don’t know if they performed it, but here it is!

If you’d like scores of the SSAA version, click here.
There is also a piano score of this version.

Percussion
Both of these choir versions have percussion parts. I would say that the drum and bells in the plainchant sections are vital, but the percussion in the hymn/middle section is optional. When RFC performed it in 2006 there was full percussion and organ. In 2019, there was piano, and only percussion in the outer sections and some bell in the hymn. I like both. You decide!

If you like this song, there are plenty more sacred songs in my catalogue. Here are “Twelve Of The Best” of them!