Acclaimed for his sacred choral and organ works, Francis Pott was recognised in 2021 with the Medal of the Royal College of Organists, its highest award. Regarded as an Everest of the organ repertoire, Christus is a Passion symphony that traces this dramatic Biblical narrative through evolving tonality, portraying Christ’s vast struggle through betrayal and crucifixion towards ultimate triumph. Christus here enjoys its first studio recording, made in the presence of the composer. Included also are premieres of Surrexit hodie (a toccata for Easter Sunday) and a commemorative chorale prelude, Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele.

Francis Pott’s Christus is regarded as one of the pinnacles of contemporary organ repertoire, and while it has been performed with great success by notable organists in the UK, Germany and the US, it has, on account of its sheer scale and virtuoso technical demands, inevitably remained something of a concert rarity.

Previous recordings of music by Francis Pott on the Naxos label include At First Light (8573976), which was a Gramophone Choice and regarded as a work of ‘thought provoking depth’. An earlier release, In The Heart of Things (8572739) was a MusicWeb International ‘Recording of the Month’, and ‘a most beautiful disc of some absolutely beautiful music.’

Tom Winpenny’s recordings for Naxos include a series Messiaen’s organ works, music by Malcolm Williamson (857137576) and two volumes of organ works by Judith Bingham (8572687 and 8574251), in which he ‘opens an illuminating window on Bingham’s richly coloured, programmatically driven engagement with the “king of instruments”’ (BBC Music Magazine).