John Rutter was born in London in 1945 and studied music at Clare College, Cambridge. His compositions embrace choral, orchestral, and instrumental music, and he has edited or co-edited various choral anthologies, including four Carols for Choirs volumes with Sir David Willcocks and the Oxford Choral Classics series.
Suite Antique: The instrumentation is the same as Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No.5. The Suite is made up of six movements ranging from `a Bach-like Aria' to a 'Richard Rodgers-style Waltz'. Rutter's own style comes forth most strongly in the final Rondeau with its characteristically forward-driving rhythms and beautiful melodic lines. Evoking an 'antique' spirit, each movement is based on a Baroque or Classical style.