Karl Jenkins on his hauntingly beautiful “Benedictus”

There's the intuitive bit

The Welsh musician and composer Karl Jenkins began his career as a jazz musician, his band Nucleus winning first prize at the Montreaux Jazz Festival in 1970. His song “Adiemus,” mixing African-tribal and Celtic-style melodies, written for an airline commercial, topped classical charts and brought him international attention. The English Classic FM named him the world’s most popular composer in 2015, when he was also knighted. His “ros y Garreg” (“ Crossing the Stone”) was performed at King Charles III’s coronation. His description of writing his “Benedictus” comes from an interview he gave classic FM radio.

It’s quite an arresting piece. Like many of the other pieces I’ve written, “Adiemus” and “Palladio” and a few others, I didn’t think much of them, but they came to be very popular with various people. . . .

I studied music academically, so I was thoroughly trained at the University of Cardiff, and the Royal Academy, so things like counterpoint, orchestration, the skill of the craft, if you like, I've learned.

But then the other bit is the kind of intuitive bit, I suppose, that some might call inspiration. But I don't use that word, because if I wait for the muse to strike, nothing happens. I have to write every day and then it's keep the good and jettison the bad. That's the only way I can work.

But when that takes over, I'm in an intuitive world, really. I follow my nose. I don't have a form or a plan ahead. . . .

Sometimes things happen. It's a simple tune, and I would not have thought it would have such resonance, but it did.

He tells two stories of people who'd suffered tragedies who loved the piece.

“There are many humbling, gratifying moments like that. But I can't really quantify it. It's difficult.

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