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Christmas Fantasy

20 May 2026

SATB and piano or brass quintet, percussion and organ
Duration: 10 minutes | Difficulty: Easy – Moderately Difficult

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This sparkling work draws together four well-known carols reflecting the joys of being together with friends and loved ones to celebrate the festive season, with hopes for brighter times ahead. Higgins’s lively arrangement of Deck the hall begins with a virtuosic instrumental introduction and features a soprano descant on the final verse. Next, Carol of the Bells employs the glockenspiel in the famous repeating four-note motif, with Higgins bringing a fresh take to this notable melody through new words and an imaginative use of the choir to portray the chiming bells. O Christmas tree, is warm and gentle, with a new text and the opportunity for a charismatic solo verse over a rich cushion of harmonies. The final movement, Here we come a-wassailing, is full of merriment, and, reflecting its composition during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, contains a subtle nod at the close towards the chaos of trying to sing ‘together’ online.

View me, Lord

19 September 2023

SATB unaccompanied
Duration: 2.5 minutes | Difficulty: Easy – Moderately Difficult

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With a text by Thomas Campion, View me, Lord is a tender prayer characterized by its sensitive text-setting. Each verse features a change in voicing, rhythm, and harmony, while the ever-changing metre provides a feeling of fluidity. The tension built throughout the work is finally resolved in the last chord, bringing this contemplative anthem to a peaceful close.

“Another piece that could well contribute to the structure of a concert is View me, Lord . . . Higgins’s version is a simple, homophonic account featuring contemporary harmony that won’t frighten the horses. The general effect is one of tenderness and warmth – exactly the words the composer himself uses at the top of the piece.”

Jeremy Jackman, Choir & Organ, February 2020

Three American Songs

19 September 2023

SATB (with divisions) and piano
Duration: 8 minutes | Difficulty: Moderately Difficult

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Higgins’s arrangements of three North-American traditional songs are sophisticated and beautiful, supported by well-crafted piano accompaniments. The first, ‘Bright morning stars’, is illuminated by a shimmering piano part with opportunities for a soloist or small group. Energy and bounce is abundant throughout the second, ‘Little wheel a-turnin’’, where the melody is passed around the voices and coloured with interesting harmonies. The last piece, ‘He’s gone away’, is a parting song between two lovers with flowing melodies and accompaniment, and ends on a note of anticipation.

Scarborough Fair

19 September 2023

SABar and piano
Duration: 2.5 minutes | Difficulty: Very Easy – Easy

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Higgins’ setting of this popular folk song is simple and wistful, particularly well-suited for children’s and youth choirs. With delicate quaver flourishes, the piano accompaniment flows gently alongside the vocal lines, creating suspensions that reflect the mysterious demands of the narrator. Originally published in The Oxford Book of Flexible Choral Songs ed. Bullard for three-part choir.