King Charles’ coronation to be recorded as an album

LONDON –

The coronation of Britain’s King Charles in May

will be released as an album, the first time a recording of such a historic ceremony will be available to audiences worldwide.

In a statement on Friday, label Decca Records said it would record the May 6 service at Westminster Abbey, as well as pre-service music, as “The Official Album of the Coronation” and release it for streaming and download on the same day.

A physical version will go out on May 15.

Running at over four hours long, the album will feature all the spoken words of the ceremony as well as its music, including 12 new compositions commissioned by King Charles.

“This will be a truly historic recording, capturing a glorious range of music from across centuries and continents, reflecting the worldwide interest in our traditions, covering multiple locations in the wonderful acoustic of Westminster Abbey, and involving an unprecedented technical plan to present the entire experience to the world on the day itself,” producer Anna Barry said in a statement.

Among the commissions for the occasion is the “Coronation Anthem”, composed by musical impresario Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Meanwhile, a poll from research company Ipsos released on Friday showed that King Charles’ approval rating has dipped since he took the throne.

However, nearly half of Britons still think he is doing a good job, according to the poll, while his daughter-in-law Kate is the most liked royal.

The poll found that 49 per cent of the public believed King Charles was doing a good job, versus 9 per cent thinking otherwise.

Almost a third had no view either way.

The approval level is down from 61 per cent from September 2022 after he succeeded his mother, Queen Elizabeth.

“With less than two weeks until the coronation, King Charles may be happy to know that half of Britons think he is already doing a good job, numbers recent prime ministers would envy,” said Ms Kelly Beaver, chief executive of Ipsos UK and Ireland.

“It’s a good start for Britain’s new King and something he will no doubt want to continue to work on once the coronation quiches are eaten and the bunting is down.”

A separate Ipsos survey also found 57 per cent were satisfied with how King Charles was doing his job, down 8 percentage points from when a similar poll was carried out in May 2022.

When it came to which royal the public liked best, the Princess of Wales, Kate, came out on top ahead of her husband and heir to the throne Prince William, “any of the king’s grandchildren”, and King Charles’ sister Princess Anne.

Among the least favourite members were Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, and the king’s second wife Camilla, now the Queen Consort, the pollster said. REUTERS