​A closer look at the music for the King’s coronation

​Theatre impresario Andrew Lloyd Webber and Scottish film score composer Patrick Doyle, whose credits include Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire and Gosford Park, are among those who have been recruited to create music for the day.

And a special concert in the grounds of Windsor Castle the following evening will feature acts including Take That and Katy Perry.

Here we take a closer look at the music of the coronation weekend.

After the arrival of Charles and Camilla at Westminster Abbey, the coronation service will begin at 11am.

Andrew Nethsingha, organist and master of the choristers at the historic abbey, is taking charge of the musical arrangements and will be directing the music during the main service.

A handpicked gospel choir – The Ascension Choir – is set to perform, and there will also be performances from the Choir of Westminster Abbey and Truro Cathedral Choir, among others.

The King’s Scholars from nearby Westminster School will proclaim the traditional “Vivat” acclamations – historically used to greet kings and queens on their arrival at their coronation.

The service will also feature a series of soloists, ranging from Welsh bass-baritone Sir Bryn Terfel to soprano Pretty Yende and baritone Roderick Williams.

Unsurprisingly, the musical choices will hark back to the last four centuries of coronations.

Like that of his mother before him, Charles’s coronation will have a soundtrack featuring music by the likes of Ralph Vaughan Williams, Edward Elgar and George Frideric Handel.

In a modern twist, there will also be music from Sir Karl Jenkins, one of the most-performed living composers in the world.

Fanfares will be played by the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry and the Fanfare Trumpeters of the Royal Air Force.

When the late Queen was crowned in June 1953, the advent of television allowed the public to see inside the abbey for the first time.

Walton’s Orb And Sceptre, inspired by Elgar’s Pomp And Circumstance Marches, was written especially for the occasion.

Other hymns and anthems performed on the day included Jupiter from The Planets by Gustav Holst, Greensleeves arranged by Vaughan Williams and Hubert Parry’s version of I Was Glad.

When the newly crowned King and Queen make their exit from Westminster Abbey at 1pm, they will embark on their coronation procession back to Buckingham Palace in the Gold State Coach.

Charles has given his personal stamp of approval to the music that will be played during this portion of the day.

Military conductor Lieutenant Colonel David Barringer previously revealed that the monarch had the final say over a list of choices presented to him.

“The first march we’ll play is Coronation Bells as we leave Westminster Abbey,” he says.

“Then there’s The King’s Company of course, and then the final march that we play is called The King’s Guard.”

For the first time at a major royal event, marching bands will use earpieces with a form of electronic metronome called a click track to keep time.

The procession music will end with a rendition of the National Anthem in Buckingham Palace Gardens before three cheers are given to the King.

Twelve new pieces have been commissioned for the coronation weekend, selected to showcase a range of talent and styles from the United Kingdom and Commonwealth.

These include six orchestral commissions, five choral commissions and one organ commission.

Lord Lloyd Webber, known for hit musicals including The Phantom Of The Opera, Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar, has drawn on the words of Psalm 98 for his anthem.

Doyle’s Coronation March, meanwhile, will feature a bold and heraldic opening that Buckingham Palace has said will evoke a sense of “pageantry”.

The piece will reflect the passing of time and carry a strong Celtic influence.

“The piece was written to commemorate his life,” says Doyle, who first encountered the then Prince of Wales in the 1980s.

“And having met him, having a strong personal, professional friendship with the King over the past 30 years, I subconsciously, unconsciously, build on aspects of his character, which hopefully he will hear reflected in the piece.”

Welsh composer Paul Mealor’s new piece, titled Coronation Kyrie, will be sung by Sir Bryn and the Westminster Abbey Choir.

It is set to be the first Welsh language performance at a coronation.

“We have a King who has shown great support for a wide variety of music over many years and is a passionate advocate for music,” says Mealor.

“It is a privilege to be a part of an occasion of this scale.

"Many of us will not experience another coronation in our lifetimes.”

Elsewhere, South African soprano Yende will sing a work by classical and film composer Sarah Class called Sacred Fire.

Class is full of praise for the King’s longstanding support of environmental concerns.

“I love the fact that we have somebody in this position, who has these values about the planet, who cares about the environment and our biodiversity,” she says.

A trio of composers – Nigel Hess, Roderick Williams and Shirley J Thompson – have created a new work based on one of Charles’s favourite hymns, Be Thou My Vision – Triptych For Orchestra.

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