GLORIA – Dr Susannah Self on Music, Myth and the Sacred Imagination

GLORIA

A Sacred Soundscape Across Traditions

For the past three years, Dr Susannah Self has been composing sacred music rooted in the Christian tradition, from Sea Requiem to her exquisite new setting of The Stabat Mater and the acclaimed Magnificat. Her latest work, Gloria, represents a deepening and expansion of this journey: a cross-denominational sacred composition that draws upon enduring spiritual archetypes and voices from across cultures and centuries.

Before the performance, Susannah will offer a special talk exploring the inspiration behind Gloria, the creative process that shaped it, and the meeting of spiritual traditions within the work. She will reflect on how sacred texts, symbols, and images from different cultures can speak to one another through music, opening pathways into the archetypal imagination.

Blending the ancient Latin Gloria text with words by John Donne, the Bhagavad Gita, and contemporary spiritual poetry, this remarkable work unfolds as a journey through…