HELEN LEACH

I composed The Black Rood of Scotland at the outset of lockdown in March 2020, in the outhouse of my late father’s cottage in Hawick, in the Scottish Borders, where we were staying at the time. Facing the unprecedented turmoil and grief of the pandemic, I wanted to connect with the Christian roots of the country, and, with its stream of melody and rich harmony, the work is a depiction of the love and longing of Christ upon the Cross. Written as a personal devotion for Holy Week, my husband, Simon, gave its first performance later that year, once churches reopened, on the Frobenius Organ of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh, for Remembrance Sunday.

The Black Rood of Scotland itself, sadly now lost, was the holy relic from which ‘Holyrood’ took its name. It was brought to the country by Saint Margaret of Scotland (1045-1093), who became a Scottish queen when she married King Malcolm III. It is believed that the young queen clutched this priceless royal treasure on her deathbed in Edinburgh Castle.