James MacMillan — Music and Faith

James MacMillan is a Catholic Scottish composer from a working class town in the west of Scotland. He composed the Mass of Blessed John Henry Newman which was performed in Westminster Cathedral in London on the occasion of Pope Benedict XVI’s beatification of the 19th century Cardinal who converted to Catholicism. This was the first visit of a pope to the United Kingdom.

This is an interesting interview about his compositions for parishes and the simplicity underlying MacMillan’s Mass and other religious compositions.

Here is the grand “Tu Es Petrus” (You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.) which is the traditional fanfare for a pope rendered in a very modern tone.

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