VATICAN CITY (AP) — A concert in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel premiered a work focused on interactions with angels from the Bible on Sunday night.
The Vatican sometimes hosts concerts in the church for visiting musicians and other special occasions. But these events are always by invitation only, and it is extremely rare for photojournalists to gain access.
“I have to make an embarrassing announcement,” Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster, said before the show began, before telling the roughly 200 attendees, most of whom were native English speakers, that they could not use their phones to film or film the premiere. Guests included Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and former British Prime Minister Theresa May.
The 70-minute oratorio “Angel Unconscious” consists of 12 tracks, each representing a story taken from the Bible. Sir James MacMillan created the work using texts by the former Dean of Canterbury, Robert Willis, who died in late 2024, shortly after completing the work.
“I wanted to create a large musical work for Holy Angels that had never been written before,” John Studzinski, the financier and philanthropist who commissioned the work from the Genesis Foundation, told The Associated Press. “When we started, I think James wasn’t sure it was possible. But when we saw the text, written by Robert Willis, and James didn’t change a word, he was moved.”
“Now we have a piece of music that will last forever that truly reflects some of the most emotional, powerful aspects of angels as messengers, mentors, warriors, motivators,” he added.
Welcome calls from strangers
The lyrics were sung by British choir The Sixteen and performed by the Cambridge chamber orchestra Britten Sinfonia on Sunday. Angels can be seen everywhere – some on the walls, depicting the life and death of Moses, and another on Michelangelo’s fresco expelling Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Their Exile is the first song on Angels Unaware.
“It was arguably the glorious unification of two of the greatest forms of artistic expression, music and painting. It was perfect,” Vermont Sen. Alison Clarkson said afterward.
The work’s title is taken from a verse that calls for brotherly love and the need to welcome strangers – some of whom may be angels. Most appear as biblical characters in the oratorio, but at least one appears to remain anonymous. In “The Song of Tobias”, the protagonist constantly blames himself for not recognizing the archangel Raphael.
“I think the dogs have always known this,” the tenor soloist sings, followed by a pause before the orchestra begins to play the final lines of the song. “How could I not know?”
The wingless angels of Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgment” can only be seen on a screen, behind which restorers on scaffolding are working to remove a white film of salt that has accumulated on the giant painting over the past three decades.
From the Sistine Chapel to the English-speaking world
“The theme of angels is one that many people of all faiths understand instinctively,” Cardinal Nichols told The Associated Press. “So I think exploring their presence and the power of angelic presence in our lives will touch the hearts and souls of many people.”
Sunday night’s concert has been recorded and will be broadcast on BBC Radio next week, according to the Genesis Foundation.
The upcoming program highlights that religious songs sung in English have a different impact than those sung in Latin or other languages. During last year’s conclave that elected the first American pope, Leo XIV, Nichols noted that English is the most commonly spoken language in the world.
“Many, many people enjoy English and are able to master it,” Nichols said.
The choir also appreciated the English lyrics.
“To be honest, we’re just rubbish singing in Italian,” said soprano Julie Cooper, wearing a sparkling green dress. “We’re used to singing in Latin, but it’s great to create these texts in English and try to make them come alive and tell stories and communicate. For a singer, that’s the most important thing.”
