Description: Caritas - first performed in 1991 - occupies an important position in Robert Saxton's output and in British opera during the closing decades of the 20th century. Thomas provides a detailed contextual setting in which to evaluate Caritas, as well as presenting an analytical commentary on the structure, musical language, instrumentation, staging and
Review Quotes: 'As both composer and specialist on medieval music, Thomas is able to approach the subject matter and its musical realisation from a position of erudite authority, interrogating closely the score and its related texts... Thomas skilfully demonstrates the means by which Saxton generates momentum across the 78-minute work... The three chapters that are devoted to the genesis of the opera (from historical documents through to the actual music) are the core of the book, and barely a page goes past without an illuminating comment... What Thomas's compelling study demonstrates time and again is that Caritas's value - if we have to think in such terms at all - lies in its impeccable attention to detail and craftsmanship and above all in the way that, by virtue of a deeply felt and considered response to the text, Saxton fashions anew a dramatic musical language that appeals to both the emotions and the intellect.' CHOMBEC News