One of my most-admired contemporary composers, British Sir John Tavener, passed away today. Perhaps best known for his "Song for Athene", performed at the funeral of Princess Diana, I started listening to his work in earnest when in the mid-1990s I acquired an album by the choir of King's College of Cambridge called Ikos. The album also featured pieces by composers Henryk Gorecki and Arvo Part, which was why I got the record in the first place, but I soon found myself seeking out more Tavener work. I have heard that Tavener claimed to be a descendant of John Taverner (note the spelling difference), himself a composer of wonderful religious vocal music in the 1500s, but I don't know if that is in fact the case. Tavener also famously said, in explaining his transcendent, ethereal sounds, something along the lines that many composers could lead you to hell, but he wanted to lead you into the experience of paradise. Try the effect for yourself:
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