I Too Shall Walk to Bethlehem

for SATB (with divisions) and piano or orchestra
Setting a text by Marc Bratcher, I too shall walk to Bethlehem depicts a journey to the Bethlehem stable 'where once a child was born', recounting the strength, courage, and heart acquired from the encounters along the way. Unison passages in upper and lower voices move seamlessly into warm homophonic harmonies, with brief moments of divisi. A flowing piano accompaniment provides support during, and interludes between, verses.
The orchestral accompaniment is available for purchase.

John Rutter studied music at Clare College, Cambridge and first came to notice as a composer and arranger of Christmas carols and other choral pieces during those early years; today his compositions, including such concert-length works as Requiem, Magnificat, Mass of the Children, The Gift of Life, and Visions are performed around the world. John edits the Oxford Choral Classics series, and, with Sir David Willcocks, co-edited four volumes of Carols for Choirs. In 1983 he formed his own choir The Cambridge Singers, with whom he has made numerous recordings on the Collegium Records label, and he appears regularly in several countries as a guest conductor and choral ambassador. John holds a Lambeth Doctorate in Music, and in 2007 was awarded a CBE for services to music. In September 2023, he received the Ivors Academy Fellowship, and in 2024 he was knighted in the King's Birthday Honours.