My collection of laude has its origins in the world of early music, being based in spirit and feeling on the unaccompanied vocal “laude” found in a collection from 13th century Cortona. The people who originally sang such things - the ‘laudesi’ - banded together in confraternities but were not usually associated with any particular church and this music was not part of any liturgy. The first laude that I wrote were, like the mediaeval originals, for unaccompanied voice - for the soprano Anna Mar...