Sounds Orchestral
Symphonies by Schubert and Mendelssohn transcribed for Organ Duet by David Gibbs
Played by Greg Morris and David Gibbs on the organ of Blackburn Cathedral
Cathedral Music
This is a very well recorded disc. The transcription is clear, making the two works sound as though they were conceived for the organ. The orchestral colouring is ever present, using the new solo organ to good effect, as well as the plethora of flutes and other imitative stops to great effect. The playing is of the highest order. just occasionally, such as at the very beginning of the Schubert, the pedals are a bit on the heavy side but always clear. Lance Andrews's series of 'Sounds ...' recordings is a really good thing. Highly recommended.
Stephen Power
The Organ - Number 340
I was more than a little sceptical when I received this disc for review: Schubert's Fifth Symphony and Mendelssohn's Fourth, arranged for organ duet. 1 was hooked by about bar 10 of the first movement. This is simply excellent arranging of orchestral music, brilliantly played. There are times when I cannot work out how Messrs Morris and Gibbs actually do it! Their command of the instrument is stupendous! They really do make the organ sound orchestral and, while some may turn up their noses (or is it their ears?) at such performances, I take my hat off to these two virtuosi for extending the repertoire, the instrument and organ technique.
DB
Organist's Review - May 2007
Two of the very sunniest orchestral symphonies have a different light shed upon them in organ duet format. It is surprising that Schubert's blithe tunefulness never earned a nickname for his 5th symphony, written at the age of nineteen. However, Schubert wrote so little for organ himself -perhaps he did not regard the organ as being able to 'sing' well. Here Messrs Morris and Gibbs (and Blackburn) justify no such qualms. The graceful, retrospectively Haydnesque first movement is taken at a cautious, almost stately pace (possibly wary of echo problems), and although unyielding pedal sub-basses hardly compare with orchestral double basses, the music still shines through. This organ sports many different fortes and delicious flutes, so the ear never tires.
Tucked away in the booklet notes is the merest hint that the Mendelssohn could be what is widely known as the 'Italian' symphony. All, the odd plod of passing pilgrims apart, is sweetness and light (though not quite so light as the Schubert -we get to hear occasional reeds here) and as Mendelssohn was seemingly content with an ophicleide in his orchestras, he could not have taken exception to the Blackburn pedal Serpent 32. However, absence of a suitably romantic horn stop necessitates a thinner cromorne at that magical moment in the central section of the third movement; but there is a thoroughly satisfying faithfulness to the spirit of the orchestral original. The outside movements are compellingly exciting and invigorating, with at least one performer being driven to virtuoso feats towards the end.
Purists often object to the organ being treated as a 'one-man band'. Well, this is a two-man band and therefore at least twice as good. Dare it be said, even more enjoyable than the real thing?
Michael Bell
TopThere is a Spirit
Music from Worcester College, Oxford
Cathedral Music
The Chapel Choir opts for a programme close to its heart, with all the music here written by composers with Worcester College connections. The pieces are unashamedly, modern (none of them was written before 1925) but accessible at the same time. I love the spiky dissonances in the Saxton's The Child of light depicting the shepherds' journey over rough land, and Rubbra's beautiful There is a spirit for soprano solo and choir, Leighton's agonised Kyrie from the Missa brevis and Gant's wistful A good-night. And unlike the college choir of the early 1990s for whom it was conceived, the present Chapel Choir copes well with Sherlaw Johnson's mass. Its meticulously notated lower parts in the Sanctus depicting the ad lib chanting of Eastern churchmen, undoubtedly contributed to that choir deeming the work unsingable back then (it was premièred by Christ Church Cathedral choir instead). It's a shame the choir's boy trebles sing in only a handful of the tracks, but, despite one or two wobbly soloists, the mixed student choir provides 64 minutes of thoroughly enjoyable music.
Martin Wolf
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - October 2006
This elegant recording presents 20th-century music by composers associated with Worcester College, and every selection deserves careful listening. Four composers have held the position of Fellow in Music at the College: Edmund Rubbra (19471968), Kenneth Leighton (19681970), Robert Sherlaw Johnson (19701999), and Robert Saxton (1999-). Stephen Oliver was a student of Leighton and Johnson at Worcester, and Andrew Gant is the current Chapel Music Consultant.
In addition to a fine collection of anthems and motets, the program includes the striking Missa brevis of Leighton. The other Mass setting, Johnson's Missa Aedis Christi, bears the Latin name of Christ Church, Oxford (called The House of Christ when Henry VIII appropriated Cardinal College from Cardinal Wolsey, and now known to regulars there simply as The House). Both settings are challenging, but highly accessible and short enough for service use.
Rubbra is represented by five original compositions, each a gem, and by his setting of the familiar Polish carol Infant holy. In particular, And when the Builders (text from Ezra, chapters 3 and 5) would be perfect for the dedication or re-dedication of a church.
Leighton's extended A Christmas Caroll 17th century text of Robert Herrick) is probably too long for most liturgical services, but it would be welcome on a seasonal choral concert. Saxton sets his own text in The Child of Light, a compelling shepherds-and-magi anthem for trebles, not easy, but a striking and effective work. The two Gant pieces, an Ave verum and A Good-night (another 17"-century text) frame the program splendidly.
We hear two choirs here, one mixed and one boys-and-men, and both are of professional caliber-while consisting of trebles from the Christ Church Cathedral Choir School and undergraduates from Worcester! Conductor Primrose is (or was, at the time of recording) Senior Organ Scholar at the College. Unfortunately, organist Chambers receives no note. Worcester is not, perhaps, one of the Oxford colleges best known for choral music, but they deserve to be heard alongside the finest. Full texts and notes are provided.
Victor Hill Ph.D
Church Music Quarterly
All the music on this fine disc is associated with Worcester College. It contains works by all the composers who have held the post of Fellow in Music since 1947 namely Rubbra, Leighton, Sherlaw Johnson and Saxton. It also features music by the current Chapel Music Consultant, Andrew Gant and a former undergraduate student, Stephen Oliver. The unique thing about Worcester is that is has a mixed choir of undergraduates from the College and a traditional Anglican-style choir with trebles from Christ Church Cathedral School. The ATB line is the same in each choir. On the disc, we get a chance to hear all the combinations (mixed choir, 'Anglican-style' choir trebles, and the combined choirs) and all give musical and effective contributions. A key point about the disc is that the music is mainly 'off the beaten track.' This is by no means a bad thing -in fact it makes the disc much more desirable. The Missa Brevis of Leighton is exceptionally well sung and the mixed choir gives a real performance with notable variation in colour. Other highlights include the many solos, especially the three sopranos, as well as the title track There is a Spirit (Rubbra), a wonderful combination of the text of the Beatitudes and words by James Nayler. Finally, I can't finish the review without praising Tom Primrose, the young Organ Scholar who directs the choirs with considerable aplomb.
Will Dawes
Veni, Sancte Spiritus
Choral and Organ music of Patrick Gowers
Organist's Review - May 2007
Having not come across a lot of Patrick Gowers's music,
this disc was always going to be a revelation. The rousing opening anthem, Veni,
Sancte Spiritus, is based on two French Church melodies from the Rouen
Processional and Rouen Antiphoner. The two melodies are very different in
character, but share the same first six notes, a characteristic that the
composer exploits. It is an exuberant and joyful setting; dance-Eke syncopations
and subtle changes of metre reflect the composer's background in jazz. The
Cathedral choir are in top form with the mixed top line revelling in their
sprightly and jovial writing. It is a pity that this is their only appearance on
the disc.
The Cantata is a longer work, written for one of the Southern Cathedrals
Festivals with a text compiled from metrical psalms. It is accompanied by the
organ and the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra. The prevailing mood is more
meditative and a little darker in outlook, with only the latter part of the
third movement providing glimpses of the lively rhythms seen in the opening
piece on the disc. The last movement is an original chorale, rather in the
manner that Bach ends his cantatas. The Chester Lullaby is a haunting setting of
a text by 16thcentury Chester nuns and the simple setting of the Libera Me works
well as a pastiche Renaissance motet, with its origins in the 1980s adaption of
Sherlock Holmes's The Priory School. The adult voices of the Guildford Camerata
sing with character, though with slightly less energy than the children, but
make light work of the long sustained phrases in the cantata.
Of the organ pieces played by Stephen Farr, I'm afraid I couldn't summon up a lot of enthusiasm for the Adagio, despite the fine performance, but the Toccata and Fugue were altogether different. Eighteen years separate the composition of the two movements; the Toccata commissioned by Simon Preston in 1970, and the Fugue by Adrian Partington in 1988, but the two work well as a pair. The Toccata sizzles along with some rapid passagework and handfuls of notes in between short, broader sections. Farr's impressive technique is more than up to the considerable demands of the piece. The Fugue is a little more academic and, unusually, starts loud and gets gradually quieter before finishing very softly. An Occasional Trumpet Voluntary complements the opening piece on the disc with its relentless, syncopated rhythms, though the title is a little misleading; the trumpet doesn't make an appearance at all! The recording is well balanced, particularly in the cantata where the organ, orchestra and choir vie for the listener's attention.
The disc demonstrates the breadth of Gowers's church and organ output and I found it enlightening throughout. For that reason alone it would be well worth investigating.
Andrew Wilson
International Record Review - March 2007
Patrick Gowers turned 70 last year, and in the course of a varied career has made a considerable reputation for himself not as a composer of music for films but also through his long association with the guitarist John Williams, the latter embracing several concertante works. The present collection displays another side of his art altogether: as a composer for the Anglican church (at least, 1 assume so: such is the flavour, anyway, despite the presence of three Latin settings).
The main focus here is on the austerely named Cantata for choir, organ and strings: this is a half-hour piece for liturgical performance, clearly modelled on the principles of Bach's many similar examples. There are five movements, each setting a metrical or paraphrased version of a different Psalm; only the first is preceded by a long, slow orchestral chorale, which establishes the predominantly sombre mode of the whole. Bach's cantatas, for perhaps obvious reasons, have had surprisingly few modern imitators, and in fact this work was a commission from the Southern Cathedrals Festival, involving three cathedral choirs. 1 have not seen a score so am not quite sure whether the potential 12 separate vocal lines are deployed at any point, though much of the writing, much of the time, involves single intertwining vocal lines which sometimes clash agonizingly: this is not a consolatory piece. It is performed not by Guildford Cathedral Choir but the larger-sized Guildford Camerata, though still recorded in Guildford Cathedral: the resonant acoustic helps the darker, slowmoving incantatory sections, sometimes reminiscent of ancient hymnody, though the faster passages, such as the march and dance in the second movement, are not obscured either: a tribute to the Lammas recording as well as to David Hill's expert direction. Full texts are necessarily supplied (as, irritatingly, they are not, of the other shorter Latin works).
Apart from the Cantata, we hear the Cathedral Choir in three short motets: 1 was particularly taken with Chester Lullaby, which features a lovely mezzo solo over a sweet sounding choral accompaniment: very Classic FM, and surely a winner for Christmas. The disc also contains half an hour of solo organ music, where the main impact is achieved by a substantial Toccata and Fugue: the composer's own self-deprecatory note says they were written many years apart, but the nimble-fingered Stephen Farr plays them as one, relishing in particular the triumphant pedal part and the grand climax of the Toccata, which again sounds splendid in the Cathedral acoustic.
In a nutshell, this is a useful anthology of organ and choral music from a composer who has made his name elsewhere: here is one major work, the Cantata, sombre maybe but which is not only an interesting piece but a potential challenge to any church musician not afraid of new and original repertoire.
Piers Burton-Page
Choir and Organ - 2007
***
Gowers (b. 1936) has a wide background in jazz, electroacoustic music and film music and brings a convincing musical authority to his output. The main work on this disc is the Cantata for triple choir, strings and organ. Commissioned by the Southern Cathedrals Festival, it is based on a metrical version of Psalm 139, unified by a chorale melody. Not afraid to be traditional in style, this is a well crafted work, communicated well by the performers. The other pieces (many for organ) demonstrate an intelligent and enjoyable response to a variety of different commissions.
Alan Bullard
Songs by Michael Head and Friends
Tenor: Richard Rowntree
Piano: David Bednall
MusicWeb
Michael Head belongs to that breed of English composer much loved by singers at Eisteddfodau, featuring perhaps in the odd recital here and there, but who is otherwise largely forgotten. The reason is a mystery; perhaps it is because despite his propensity for putting music to words (over 120 songs) unlike John Ireland with Sea Fever or George Butterworth with his song-cycle A Shropshire Lad, Head never had a hit’ song. In fact, I’d never before come across an album devoted almost entirely to his songs. In that regard, both tenor Richard Rowntree and his accompanist David Bednall are to be commended for their initiative.
The choice of songs on this disc is interesting too. Except for Ships of Arkady (also spelt Arcady) the songs are new to me. I am more accustomed to the likes of Money O!, Sweethearts and Wives and Limehouse Reach which I have sung at singing competitions. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination a Michael Head expert.
That Head creates a certain ambience with his songs is undeniable. This is noticeable in his chromatic settings of Seamus O’Sullivan’s The Piper and Francis Ledwidge’s Nocturne. The former has an accompaniment reminiscent of twinkling and lilting feet skipping to the beat of a piper when all the world went gay, went gay for half an hour in the streets today’ while the latter is a sigh of celestial proportions set over a bed of earthbound chords.
David Bednall himself has inserted a couple of his own compositions in this album including Walter de la Mare’s patriotic England which was not completed until the day it was recorded. His style evokes echoes of other composers especially his Vaughan Williams’- inspired setting of Thomas Hardy’s First sight of her and after. Rowntree’s interpretation of England, incidentally, is one of the best in this album.
Randolph Magri-Overend
MusicWeb
In recent years there have been no major recorded collections of Michael Head’s songs. Lammas now put this right and I hope they will go on to tackle C.W Orr and Margaret Wegener.
Richard Rowntree has a pastel-inflected, fragile, light-toned tenor something in the manner of Ian Partridge though not his equal. This should suit these too rarely encountered poetic blooms by Michael Head. The enunciation is excellent but breath control can be fallible. A slight choke in the voice infrequently betrays the strain these songs put on his voice.
Michael Head was born in Eastbourne on 28 January 1900. His education was interrupted by call-up in 1918. The next year saw Boosey & Hawkes publishing four songs Over the Rim of the Moon. This was also the same year in which he began studying with John Ireland. Ireland was a close associate of Alan Bush. Head married Bush’s sister Nancy who also became his librettist for a series of small-scale opera projects. In 1927 Head became professor of Piano at the RAM, a position he retained until retirement in 1975. He became well known as a broadcaster and performer of his own songs from 1924 onwards often accompanying himself in his own songs. He died in Cape Town from a sudden illness on 24 August 1976.
The pianist David Bednall takes his role with notable artistry and is pliant to Rowntree in the shaping of Head’s gently lyrical songs. These are not all simple melodics. For example there’s darkness in the bell references in Foxgloves to the words of Mary Webb and also in the quiet detonations of the Rossetti setting of Love’s Lament. The latter has an untypical protesting tone that I associate with Havergal Brian’s songs. Green Rain again setting Mary Webb inhabits a world not far distant from the mildew of Warlock’s Along the Stream. Bednall lovingly evokes the subtle raindrop imagery. By contrast there is the glancing and pointed delight of A Piper recently heard by me on Janet Baker’s 1962 English song anthology newly reissued on Regis. A troubadour sweetness is accorded to A Green Cornfield, to Love not me for comely grace and to the masterly When Sweet Ann Sings with its gracefully rounded refrain. These are most lovingly shaped by Rowntree. The warm hymning of the English countryside continues in the slightly Delian England to words by de la Mare. The four songs of Over the Rim of the Moon date as a set from 1919. Good to hear them as a set rather than excerpted. They range from the dreamy silvery tintinnabulation of The Ships of Arcady, the chiming forthright Beloved which puts considerable stress on Rowntree with the melodic line falling across the bar lines to the elusive moody The Rim of the Moon (Nocturne). Many Head songs have a distinctive signature a mix of pastoral warmth, serenade and soft melancholy and you can hear it in full play in Dear Delight and in slight measure in A Slumber Song, You Shall not go a-Maying and in A Summer Idyll where aestival warmth holds sway.
David Bednall’s Thomas Hardy setting rocks and tolls carrying a rising dramatic discharge. This is not that far removed from Head though perhaps more Pierrot-expressionist than anything the older composer wrote. Howells’ King David was also on that Regis Janet Baker disc. This beautiful turmoil-stilling song is given an engaging performance. The disc ends with two Gurney songs: Down by the Salley Gardens and Sleep which are both most sensitively done.
Rob Barnett
Heavenly Harmonies - Three Trebles from Blackburn Cathedral
Daniel Adams, James Holding and Thomas Croxson
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - November 2006
I happened to be in York during the editing of this disc and was sincerely moved to hear that, somewhere, boy trebles are still singing great music as well as maintaining their studies and playing sports! The idea of three trebles is not, fortunately, a take-off on "The Three Tenors" and such-in fact, Daniel Adams and James Holding were recorded in 2002, while Thomas Croxson came along serendipitously in 2004. Many of the selections are highly familiar-what voice student has not sung Monteverdi's Maledetto sia l'aspetto? - but there are some relative rarities scattered through this mostly sacred program.
I am especially pleased to hear the Pelham Humfrey setting of John Donne's Hymne "to God the Father". I know that the John Hilton setting (The Hymnal 1982, #140) is the original and "authorized" version, but 1 have believed for decades that Humfrey better captures the crushing and poignant sense of guilt in the first two stanzas, the increased urgency at "I have a sin of fear," then the rising hope at "But swear by thyself," and the triumphant affirmation at "And having done that." Young Holding sings with assurance and feeling, though I prefer a substantially slower tempo and a bit more dramatic sense.
Other relative rarities are a "Panis angelicus" of Marc-Antoine Charpentier, "My misdeeds prevail against me" and "I will magnify thee" by Joseph Corfé an anonymous "Sweet was the song", and "Rejoice in the Lord, 0 Ye Righteous" by James Nares. The two 2002 singers join in duets by Matthew Locke, Maurice Greene, and Richard Deering. Even such standards as Handel's "Where'er You Walk 'and "Where the Bee Sucks" by Thomas Arne come off with cool freshness. All three boys have pure tone, exemplary intonation, and clear diction. Greg Morris provides four early English voluntaries as interludes and plays them quite stylishly. The instrument is a four rank chamber organ by Kenneth Tickell with an ingratiating sound. According to the notes, it has a "transposing key action, enabling the organ to be playable at A = 415, 430, 440, [and] 466 pitches. Now, of course, 415 and 466 differ from 440 by a semitone in each direction, so a sliding keyboard can accomplish that (with some attention to the temperament or tuning being used!), but I have tried in vain to learn how a tracker instrument can slip to A=430.
Victor Hill Phd
Church Music Quarterly - September 2006
Blackburn's trebles should be proud of their disc. The three boys, overall, give a good account of their musical skills. As well as performances of some of the 'classic' Bach and Handel solos there are several tracks by less well-known composers such as Corfe, Anon of Egerton and Nares. In between, Morris plays three delightful interludes on the Tickell chamber organ. Though the programme of entirely seventeenth-and eighteenth century music is an admirable achievement, there might be too much of the same thing on the disc since 20 of the 27 tracks are solo treble accompanied by chamber organ. However, there are beautiful performances of quality and, as Tanner says in the booklet, I 'your talents and gifts are precious. They are to be used for God's glory.'
Will Dawes
God So Loved The World - A Passiontide Sequence
The Chapel Choir of University College, Durham
Recorded in York Minster
Church Music Quarterly - March 2007
***
Recorded in York Minster, this disc features Bairstow's The Lamentation, with the benefit of the glorious acoustic for which it was conceived and the sumptuous organ that Bairstow played from 1913 to 1946. There are plenty of a cappella pieces on this disc, but Oliver Bond's accompaniment makes a splendid contribution to the choir's rendition of Howells's yearning Like as the Hart. Other works include Stainer's God so loved the world; Leighton's Drop, drop, slow tears; Farrant's Call to remembrance; Duruflé's Ubi caritas; Tallis's Salvator mundi Bruckner's Christus factus est., Lotti's Crucifixus,. Brahms's Geisliches Lied; Darke's 0 brother man; and another Bairstow piece, Jesu, grant me this, I pray. Of two works by the Chamberlain of York \Minster Richard Shephard, one is a contrafactum of Pearsall's madrigal Great God of love fitting it to the words Take up thy cross, the Saviour said. It works very well -rather better, in fact, than Pearsall's fitting of his masterpiece Lay a garland to the words Tu es Petrus Among the many fine performances on an altogether enjoyable disc, The Reproaches by John Sanders stand out as particularly gripping and moving. The young voices of the Chapel Choir of University College, Durham are a joy to listen to: expressive, well blended, well tuned and with no breathiness.
Christopher Maxim
MusicWeb
Recorded in York Minster in Summer 2005 (the Director of the Choir being a distinguished former chorister of York Minster) this fine release from the Chapel Choir of University College, Durham follows on from their disc Cantate Domino reviewed last year. The present recording follows a sequence of music for Passiontide, including favourites such as Stainer's God so loved the world, and the more recent Sanders Reproaches, and new recordings (Darke, O Brother Man, Perasall/Shephard Take up the Cross). The recording quality is excellent throughout, and the balance within the voices is always good. The only issue comes with the accompanied works, especially Like as the Hart. In these, the choir occasionally outsings the organ, and the organ reveals occasional moments where synchronisation is a problem. But there is so much good on this disc: for instance I greatly enjoyed Richard Shephard's re-textualisation of Persall's Great God of Love. It would have been good to have dual authorship too on Bairstow/Gibbons Jesu, grant me this, I pray. Overall, this is a fine release and a good, solid choral sound.
Sounds Atmospheric
Organ Music of Herbert Howells played by Christopher Stokes on the organ of Manchester Cathedral
Cathedral Music
Reviewing two recordings of the organ works of Herbert Howells is, as yo might expect, quite heavy going, and I am afraid I cannot really give a definitive verdict as to which one I favour more. Both players have a good understanding of the works they are performing and the high standard of playing reflects this. This having been said, the interpretations of the one work common to both discs, Partita, differ quite considerably. The organ of Dunedin Town Hall sounds good in the space it fills, and the tempi are suited to the size of the building. The Manchester Cathedral organ on the other hand has been recorded too close and therefore, the valid fast tempi, which may be suited to 'live' performance, make the overall sound muddy. Perhaps this is the forfeit for getting the desired general effect. The second Rhapsody on the Dunedin disc doesn't seem to have enough guts, (something that the organ at Manchester has in abundance) to do the climaxes of this piece justice. The Sonata fares better than the Rhapsody and the Intrada is an interesting work, and, as the notes written by Costin say, 'deserves to be heard'. As to the other works on the Manchester disc, these are more successful than Partita (though I do like the solo oboe at the start of the Partita's Interlude). Neither of the instruments has been recorded much in the past, so perhaps that will be enough to entice some readers to have a listen.
Stephen Power
Choir and Organ
Stokes's all-Howells programme includes three Psalm Preludes. Master Tallis's Testament (which HH considered his finest organ work), the Rhapsody in C sharp minor and the gritty and not-often played Partita of 1971, dedicated to Edward Heath when he became Prime Minister. Stokes has the measure of this music and plays with consummate authority. It's not his fault that the Manchester Cathedral acoustic (and organ) are not quite as 'atmospheric' as that of some other cathedrals.
John Kitchen
Organists' Review - November 2006
From the first notes of Set 1, No. 1, 1915, [11, we know that we are in the hands of a first-rate musician -beautifully judged stretching of strong notes and finely executed piston crescendi and diminuendi, inspired colour choices, well judged accelerandi and rallentandi all make for a most satisfying performance. And so it goes throughout the CD. Christopher captures the peace and confidence of Set 1, No. 2, 1916, [21, the drama of the 3rd Rhapsody, 1918, [31, and makes light work of the testing convergent legato chords of Set 2, No.], 19 3 8, [41, together with its inherent registrational difficulties. The moods of Saraband for the Morning of Easter, 1940, [51, Master Tallis's Testament, 1940, [61 and Saraband in modo elegiaco, 1945, [71 are well grasped and in the Partita, 1971, [8-121 it feels that he, and therefore we, are much more involved with the performance. The playing, of course, is very clean and authoritative, and we enjoy Christopher's intimate knowledge of his instrument.
The specification is given at the back of the CD booklet.
So if Howells is your cup of tea, and I acknowledge that his greatest appeal is usually to the church musician, then this CD should definitely be in your collection.
Andrew Fletcher
Church Music Quarterly - September 2006
This CD is an excellent introduction to Howells's organ music, featuring three early works: Psalm Preludes Set 1 Nos. 1 (1915) and 2 (1916), and the Rhapsody No. 3 in C sharp minor (1918); four middle period works: Psalm Prelude Set 2, No. 1 (1938), Saraband for the morning of Easter, Master Tallis's Testament, and Saraband in modo elegiaco; and the relatively late fivemovement Partita (1971). Composed as a gift to Edward Heath when he became Prime Minister, the Partita is still discernibly by Howells, but its dissonance is, in places, rather closer to that found in the organ music of Leighton than to the harmonic language of the other pieces on the disc. Christopher Stokes's performances not only communicate the deep emotion of the music, but also display an understanding of its architecture. A strong sense of rhythm ensures that, while the music often ruminates, it does not ramble. The rich sonorities of the (essentially Harrison) organ of Manchester Cathedral are ideal for Howells; Christopher Stokes blends the stops and handles registration changes with aplomb.
This disc leaves me regretting two things: first that Howells did not produce much more organ music like the Partita, and secondly that this disc is not titled 'The Complete Organ Music of Herbert Howells, Volume One'. I hope that we shall hear more of Christopher Stokes's dynamic and expressive playing of Howells on CD.
Christopher Maxim
MusicWeb
The music of Herbert Howells remains justifiably popular in Great Britain, and is becoming increasingly known outside the UK. He is perhaps best known for his choral music. It is easy to understand why, as anyone who has heard ‘Take him earth for Cherishing’ or the St Paul’s or Gloucester Service Evening Canticles will testify. Howells’ organ music has also found a firm place in the repertoires of British organists. Howells himself was only briefly a Cathedral organist, at Salisbury, and he assisted at St John’s Cambridge during the war. His use of the organ is, in the first instance, orchestrally inspired, just as the organs were which Howells knew. The organ of Manchester Cathedral, heard on the present recording, is then, in one sense, rather appropriate, containing as it does 73-note chests throughout, so that the octave-couplers work all the way to c61. This idiosyncrasy was introduced in the 1950s when the organ was substantially rebuilt by Harrisons to the specification of the then organist Norman Cocker, yes he of Tuba Tune fame. Cocker especially enjoyed playing orchestral transcriptions.
At no fewer than 89 stops, the organ isn’t lacking in colour, its huge variety of enclosed 8’ stops especially necessary in this repertoire. What is lacking is acoustic. Some more bloom in the sound would undoubtedly aid the warm, though sometimes dark and broodingly chromatic music. I wondered occasionally if Christopher Stokes could have used more überlegato to mask the lack of aural decay, though this is being really picky. It must be said that Stokes’s programme is essentially divided into two parts, so different is the late Partita, written for Sir Edward Heath. This gritty work receives as committed a performance as could be wished for. Stokes’s playing in general is excellent; sensitive to the detailed nuances of Howells’ notated phrasing and using ‘his’ organ to maximum effect. The Rhapsody No. 3 is given an especially gripping reading. A former Professor of Organ at Trinity College, and organist of St Martin in the Fields in London, Stokes combines his duties at Manchester Cathedral with a teaching post at Chetham’s.
A very recommendable taster of some of Howells’s best organ compositions, all of which receive excellent performances.
Chris Bragg
The Organ
I have reviewed recordings by Christopher Stokes before. I continue to be most impressed by him, and warmly welcome this recording of some of Howelis' best known organ music. Stokes and the Manchester organ are hand in glove. Stokes has chosen music from the composer's early (1915-1918), middle (1938-1945) and late (1971) periods, the last being represented by the Partita, written as a promise to Edward Heath if he became Prime Minister. The first period is represented by two Psalm Preludes and the Rhapsody no 3 in C sharp minor,. and the second by the Saraband for the Morning of Easter, Master Tallis's Testament and the Saraband 'In modo elegiaco' What can I say? Sumptuous music from the Anglican cathedral organ loft tradition sumptuously played on a classic organ. Very highly recommended!
DB
Regina Caeli
The Chapel Choir of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Choir and Organ - March/April 2007
****
This recording, consisting mainly of Marian texts, features young composer Andrew March, whose music appears on seven of the 18 tracks. March is an interesting new voice in sacred music. Programmed alongside the works of Harris, O'Regan, Bruckner, Britten, Grieg, Eccard, Stravinsky, Gesualdo and Górecki his music does not sit uncomfortably in this company. March has the ability to create an atmosphere that transcends the ordinary. The Chapel Choir of Corpus Christi sings with heartfelt commitment but would benefit from having more resonance on the bass line.
Shirley Ratcliffe
Cathedral Music
This is certainly an eclectic selection of music, ranging from Gesualdo's devasting 0 vos omnes to Gorecki's now-familiar Totus tuus with some Grieg, Britten and Harris thrown in for good measure. But the central focus of this disc is the work of Andrew March (b. 1973), who has written several works specifically for this choir. The choir cope well with his approachable Yet interesting harmonic language, particularly in the simple beauty of Be still and know that I am God. Throughout the disc there are some slight fluctuations of intonation and uneven balance where one hears individual voices rather than a truly, blended sound, but diction is for the most part good and the sound is vibrant and youthful The programme is entirely a cappella (apart from Stephen Cleobury's arrangement of the carol Joys Seven) and the two young organ scholars clearly know how to coax the best out of their singers.
Julian Thomas
MusicWeb
2005 marked the end of Daniel Soper’s period as Organ Scholar of Corpus Christi College and de facto director of the College Chapel Choir. To mark this occasion Lammas has issued this disc of sacred music loosely themed around works dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The programme carefully mixes the known and lesser known in a rather effective way.
The choir sings William Harris’s perennial favourite Faire is the Heaven but also include the lesser-known Bring us, O Lord God. This is a setting of John Donne. Like Faire is the Heaven it is for double choir and set in D flat. Bruckner’s Ave Maria comes over impressively despite the relatively small size of the choir, which numbers just 24, though I would have liked more refulgence of tone from the women.
A lighter note is struck by Stephen Cleobury’s arrangement of the traditional song Joys Seven. In Britten’s astonishing A Hymn to the Virgin, written when he was just 17, the choir displays a lovely blend. Grieg’s Ave Maris Stella is a charming miniature with much melodic charm.
Eccard’s Presentation of Christ in the Temple is another perennial favourite, though I could have wished that they sang it in the original German rather than in Troutbeck’s Victorian English. Stravinsky’s Ave Maria is simple and effective, rather different from his characteristic orchestral music.
I’m afraid that I felt that the choir rather bit off more than they could chew in Gesualdo’s motet O Vos Omnes. They sing the music with a good broad sweep but the heavily chromatic modulations sound uncomfortable.
It would be easy for the reviewer to simply pick holes in the performances. There are moments of unsupported tone, occasions when the tuning is not all it could be and the upper voices tend toward hardness of tone when under pressure. But that is to discount the passion and commitment which the young singers bring to this music; everything is sung with vivid intensity. And achieving the recording is a striking achievement given that the singers are all students and must fit in three services per week on top of their studies. Daniel Soper’s achievement with the choir seems to have borne fruit as from 2005 Corpus Christi have had a permanent musical director. The conducting honours on the disc are shared between Daniel Soper and Rebecca Drake, the College’s other organ scholar.
The programme as described so far would be impressive enough, but the choir has included a striking group of contemporary pieces. Tarik O’Regan’s Sub tuum praesidium was commissioned by Corpus Christi College for a reunion of former Choral and Organ scholars. It is a haunting piece that mixes plainchant-like melodies with quiet note clusters.
But if the disc is intended as a showpiece for Soper and his Corpus Christi choir, it is also something of a showpiece for the work of composer Andrew March as the choir sing seven of March’s motets. March is a former winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society composition prize and studied at the Royal College of Music. He was written a number of motets specifically for the Corpus Christi College choir. Phos Hilaron sets an ancient Christian hymn to striking and spiky effect. March’s harmonic language is often challenging but always within the context of music suitable for a college choir. Soper and his group perform the piece well, but it was obviously a challenge for them.
March’s Nunc Dimittis was dedicated to Corpus Christi College and was inspired by hearing the choir singing in Salisbury Cathedral. The piece uses rich homophonic chords to great effect though the performance suffers from some hardness of tone. The Magnificat is not strictly a companion piece and musically it is a contrast, using a spiky melodic idea with wide leaps in intervals. Be Still and Know sets an adaptation of words from Psalm 46. The piece is rather affecting, starting from and returning to quiet contemplation with more developed music in the central section.
March’s setting of the Regina Coeli text - called Marian Antiphon No. 3 - has moments of great power but is a remarkably contemplative setting of the text, with some lovely still moments. March’s Spiritus uses overlapping dissonant phrases in a spare manner, utilising the building’s acoustic to maximum effect. This group of pieces by March is completed with a setting of texts from Revelation.
I am not sure that either March or the choir was well served by including so many of March’s pieces on the disc. March’s music, striking though it is, is taxing to sing and perhaps the choir should have considered trimming the programme slightly. March’s music sounds as if it is wonderfully useful in the context of the daily life of a chapel choir, but gathering seven such pieces does not quite do justice to the breadth of his talent; some of the motets fail to rise much above the level of gebrauchsmusik.
The disc concludes with a fine performance of Gorecki’s Totus Tuus. The choir is at its best in the more familiar pieces. Though the disc could not be considered as a library choice, there is much to consider. If you think of it more as a live snapshot, then the young singers bring a freshness and vitality to the music which enables us to enjoy the fruits of Daniel Soper’s three productive years with the college choir.
Robert Hugill
Sounds Awesome
Robert Crowley plays music by Alan Ridout, Humphrey Clucas, Peter Wishart and Humphrey Searle on the organ of Canterbury Cathedral
Cathedral Music
Robert Crowley continues his advocacy of 20th and 21st century British organ music in this disc. Alan Ridout's Seven Last Words is preceded by a number of his smaller works (notably ajoyful Paean). The Seven Last Words are bold and atmospheric with hints of Messiaen in the writing and, as Crowley writes in the notes, Ridout's response to the text is "deeply felt and imaginative." The softer colours in 'Verily I say unto thee' and the pedal-only movement 'It is finished' are particularly effective. Humphrey Clucas's Psalm Prelude and larger-scale Symphony for Organ (written for Crowley in 2004) with its B-A-C-H references and Passion chorale variations are given convincing performances. The disc is completed with Humphrey Searle's Cyprus Dances and Peter Wishart's jaunty Pastorale and Fughetta. The Canterbury organ sounds well in Crowley's hands, though it occasionally lacks the raw passion that the music requires.
Julian Thomas
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - December 2006
This fine program is devoted to music by 20th-century British composers, primarily that of Alan Ridout and Humphrey Clucas (see also my appreciative review of Crowley playing Clucas at St Albans Cathedral in the September 2003 issue of this Journal).
The principal work of Ridout is "The Seven Last Words", a stunning work that has been recorded by Allan Wicks, now out-of-print. This elegant suite captures the sense of each of the seven sentences and, despite considerable technical difficulties, never strays into being a display piece. "It Is Finished" is scored entirely for the pedals and, while I imagine Christ's great "Tetelestai!" as a triumphant cry, this treatment still conveys a powerful impression. The recording would be ideal for private or small group meditations during Passiontide, each "word" being between two and four-and-a-half minutes in duration. Four shorter but enjoyable pieces of Ridout begin the program; the Epithalamium would be a wise choice for something "different" at a wedding.
The major work of Clucas here is the Symphony for Organ, written for Crowley. The first movement is in sonata-allegro form, as is the Scherzo which follows it and which, like so many works for organ, incorporates the B-A-C-H motive. The work concludes with a set of variations on the Passion Chorale, culminating in a triumphant combination of the chorale, B-A-C-H, and other themes of the Symphony. The other Clucas work is the short prelude on Psalm 22:16. A delightful Pastorale and Fughetta by Peter Wishart and the Cyprus Dances of Humphrey Searle complete the program.
Crowley's technique and rhythmic energy are in evidence throughout, but one never loses the train of his sheer musicality. Lance Andrews, as always, is a master recording engineer. Helpful program notes, a brief biography of Crowley, a stoplist, and credits are provided.
Victor Hill PhD
International Record Review
'Sounds Awesome' is the title of a recital of modern British organ music played by Robert Crowley on the organ of Canterbury Cathedral. The composers represented are Alan Ridout (with five works), Humphrey Clucas (who has two in this collection), Peter Wishart and Humphrey Searle. Searle's Cyprus Dances, Op.76, commissioned by this organist, was written in Limassol in l981, not long before the composer's death. It is an impressive piece, very well imagined for the instrument (how few contemporary composers have mastered the inherent nature of the organ!) and certainly deserves recording. Wishart's Pastorale and Fughetta is less distinguished (certainly in the short Fughetta, which tends to get somewhat lost towards the end); the two works by Clucas are more inherently individual and genuinely musical. The brief Psalm Prelude (on a verse from Psalm 22) seems to be a good introduction to Clucas's style, at least to judge by the extended Symphony for Organ which follows. I am not certain that this work is intrinsically symphonic as such; it is undoubtedly a serious composition, very cleverly laid out (the three movements are a large-scale Allegro followed by a Scherzo and a set of Variations, including what one might term a passacaglietta), yet there seems too little variety of mood within the work to be completely convincing, although repeated hearings may cause me to view this aspect more positively. There is no doubt in my mind that Clucas (born in 1941) is a genuine creative figure -as the symphony's finale moves to its powerful conclusion various familiar elements are combined in an impressive tapestry. The music by Ridout varies from quite short pieces to The Seven Last Words - naturally, a more important and much larger piece. All of this music is eminently worthwhile and is exceptionally well played. The recording, in this rather fierce acoustic, is outstandingly good. This excellent CD is well worth acquiring.
Robert Matthew-Walker
The Organ - Number 336
One of the aims of this disc is to bring the music of these contemporary or near-contemporary composers to a wider audience. Wishart and Searle wrote little for the organ, but the former's Pastorale and Fughetta and the latter's Cyprus Dances certainly deserve a place in the repertoire. The main focus of the disc is on Ridout's work, previously recorded by Allan Wicks on the Canterbury instrument in an earlier incarnation. The centrepiece, of course, is The Seven Last Words given a stunning performance here by Crowley. The Mander/Willis sounds stupendous too. But mention should also be made of the other Ridout pieces -Reredos, Paean, Prelude on St Thomas'Honour We and Epithalamium which together make up a significant addition to the modern organ canon. Clucas's recent Symphony for Organ, which I also found most appealing -especially when it came to the variations of the last movement -and his Psalm Prelude balance the disc. Clucas is less dissonant than Ridout, but none the less distinctive in his musical style. I recommend this disc as a means of getting to know exciting modern repertoire for the organ.
DB
MusicWeb
Robert Crowley and Lammas have already served Alan Ridout’s organ music well. After Sounds of Alan Ridout and Sounds Contemporary, both reviewed here some time ago, here comes another release in which Ridout’s organ music has the lion’s share. Ridout wrote for organ regularly and consistently throughout his composing life. The somewhat enigmatically titled Reredos, Ridout’s first acknowledged organ work, was written in the mid-1950s when he was music teacher at Holmewood House, Tonbridge. The music begins quietly and slowly before gaining momentum in the central Allegro section. It already displays several Ridout hallmarks: dissonant harmonies reminiscent of Messiaen and Kenneth Leighton. Paean of 1963 is a short brilliant Toccata all over in two minutes’ time. An ideal encore to any organ recital.
Ridout had a long association with Canterbury and its cathedral’s organist Allan Wicks who regularly played his organ works, some of which he committed to disc during the LP era. Some of Ridout’s great organ works such as The Fourteen Stations of the Cross (1978), Three Pictures of Graham Sutherland (1967) and The Seven Last Words (1965) were written for Wicks; and so was the beautiful Prelude on St Thomas Honour We based on a 14th century carol. The Seven Last Words is one of Ridout’s organ masterpieces, and one in which he explores a wide range of moods and textures, by turns harsh and dissonant, forceful and appeased, violent and meditative. Each of the seven sections is neatly characterised, without ever being programmatic or descriptive. No. 1 Father, forgive them lays more emphasis on the cruelty of crucifixion than on forgiveness. No. 2 Woman, behold thy son is calm and tender. No. 3 My God, why hast thou forsaken me? is another angular, brutal movement that stands in complete contrast to the preceding section and the one that follows (No. 4 Verily I say unto thee : Today shalt thou be with me in paradise), another quiet meditation. No. 5 I thirst is a fast, energetic movement. No. 6 It is finished is played on the pedals throughout and must be awfully tricky from the technical standpoint. The concluding section Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit provides an assertive and majestic apotheosis to what is a really great piece of organ music.
The short Epithalamium, composed in 1967 for the marriage of Reverend David Marriott at Guildford Cathedral, is a short, calm but lively piece of great refinement.
Humphrey Clucas’ music, too, has been well served by Crowley and Lammas (in Sounds of Humphrey Clucas and in Sounds Contemporary). Crowley chose two fairly recent works composed in 2004: the short straightforward Psalm Prelude and the rather more ambitious Symphony for Organ composed for him and first performed by him in Westminster Cathedral. The Symphony is in three movements: a weighty Allegro in sonata form. Incidentally, one of the two subjects reminded me of the theme of Mars in Holst’s Planets, but none the worse for that. There follows a nimble Scherzo into which the composer manages to weave the BACH motive. The third movement is a short set of variations, including a short Passacaglia. The conclusion is a summing-up of the main themes heard in the previous movements. Clucas’s organ music is on the whole more traditional than Ridout’s, but is nevertheless quite deftly done and superbly crafted. His Symphony for Organ clearly deserves wider exposure.
This generously filled and most desirable release includes two rarities by British composers not readily associated with the organ: Peter Wishart and Humphrey Searle. Peter Wishart’s music is still shamefully neglected, so that there is all too little of it available in commercial recordings. I can only think of his String Quartet No.3 in A Op.22 on Tremula TREM 102-2 and some songs and piano pieces on BMS 409 (cassette only). His delightful Pastorale and Fughetta Op.38 is a quite engaging miniature of great charm. Humphrey Searle’s Cyprus Dances Op.76, one of his last completed works, is another most welcome, unpretentious but colourful addition to the repertoire.
Robert Crowley plays superbly throughout and is evidently in empathy with the music. The recording is very fine indeed. I hope that he may be persuaded to record more of Ridout’s organ music - the Resurrection Dances and the Sinfonia, amongst others - and to continue exploring the neglected byways of British organ music. In short, this is a very fine release that should appeal to all those who enjoy the organ music of Leighton, Mathias and Messiaen.
Hubert Culot
Stabat Mater - Pergolesi
St Albans Abbey Girls Choir, Emma Kirkby, Catherine Denley, London Baroque
Church Music Quarterly - March 2007
***
Emma Kirkby's name is sure to catch the eye of many readers. It was a shrewd move to enlist her services and, while her voice has inevitably matured over the years, it retains the essential Kirkby sound. This is, nevertheless, very much a choral disc, rather than merely a platform for the soloists. The programme opens with 0 Euchari by Hildegard of Bingen, sung by soloist and chorus. Pergolesi's Stabat Mater follows, performed not as one might expect by the two adult soloists, but by the chorus of girls for some movements, and the ladies (variously solos and ducts) for others. This format works well, not least because the girls are so good. Indeed, one might almost wish the entire work had been performed by ' v them, had practical considerations allowed. The accompaniment provided by London Baroque is admirable, capturing the moods of Pergolesi's writing from the desolate to the lambent. The remaining items are also accompanied and are by Lallouette (1651-1728), Charpentier (1636-1704), Richard Dering (c.1580-1630), Jan Baptist Verrijt (c.161o-5o) and Monteverdi. One of the pieces by Monteverdi is a setting of the hymn for the Nativity of St John the Baptist Ut queant laxis and the disc ends with the same composer's splendid Confitebor Terzo alla Francese for soprano, alto and chorus. On this disc, the Girls' Choir of St Albans Abbey demonstrate themselves to be not only among the finest cathedral girls' choirs in Great Britain, but worthy of ranking alongside the best boys' choirs.
Christopher Maxim
Choir and Organ - 2007
*****
The Lammas disc opens with Hildegard's 0 Euchari, a perfect introduction to the Pergolesi, which is accompanied by the beguiling sounds of London Baroque. This performance, five minutes quicker than the above, is flowing but never hurried. The girls sing on five of the tracks, the remainder of the work falling to the mature, vibrant tones of Emma Kirkby that now give her voice added depth, and the rich sounds of Catherine Denley. It's a stunning performance that has the girls delivering the ornamentation like true professionals. I found it very moving and it really shouldn't have been followed by anything else -unfortunately there are seven tracks left. One problem is the positioning of the main work. For me there is just too much music, however beautifully sung by this talented choir. Both performances are highly recommended.
Shirley Ratcliffe
MusicWeb - April 2006
This new release from the independent Lammas label contains nine sacred works from Renaissance and Baroque composers. It features Pergolesi’s magnificent ‘Stabat Mater’ for soprano, alto and chorus. The St. Albans Abbey Girls Choir are celebrating their tenth anniversary in 2006. It is good to hear them on this disc.
The St Albans Abbey Girls Choir was formed back in 1996 by a group of twenty-five girls aged between seven and fifteen. A significant development in the progress of the choir came in 2001 with the appointment of Simon Johnson as Assistant Master of Music and Director of the Abbey Girls Choir at St Albans Cathedral. The year 2006 marks the Choir’s tenth anniversary and this recording is a celebration of their achievements and continued development. The St Albans Abbey Girls Choir have already released two acclaimed recordings, Awake my Soul and Lo, the full, final sacrifice; both for the Lammas label. This recording came about following a sell-out concert in May 2004 featuring the same performers and much of the same repertoire.
One is immediately struck by the spirited and impassioned singing of the St Albans Abbey Girls Choir which contains that special ability to emotionally inspire the listener. They convey an abundance of confidence and provide impressive colour in their interpretations which easily overrides any episodes of patchy tuning and difficulties of security of ensemble in the lower passages.
For two generations the uniquely beautiful voice, incisive intelligence and brilliant musicianship of Emma Kirkby has delighted audiences both in concert performance and on record. The years have affected Kirkby’s vocal flexibility and consequently reduced her ability to thrill but her standards remain high. It remains a pleasure to hear her voice and I thoroughly enjoyed her performance in the Cujus animam gementem and Vidit suum dulcem natum of the Pergolesi Stabat Mater. Sadly, I was disappointed with the voice of Catherine Denley whose contralto was uncomfortably unsteady, especially in her lower registers and generally lacking in smoothness and focus.
Formed in 1978 the London Baroque ensemble, together with Terence Charlston on the Vincent Woodstock organ, provide impeccable playing throughout. Simon Johnson brings enormous conviction to his expert direction.
The Lammas booklet notes are of a high standard with full Latin texts and English translations. Recorded at the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban, in St. Albans, there is no problem with the sound provided from the Lammas engineers.
Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater is a most frequently recorded sacred work with dozens of recordings currently available in the catalogues. Consequently, any recommended recording must be of the highest possible quality.
Michael Cookson
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - January 2006
In the fall of 2002, I visited St. Albans and was greatly impressed by the young choristers. Since there is no choir school, these folks come from around the city and must be dedicated to their singing. The Girls Choir is celebrating their tenth anniversary this year, and they form a most impressive ensemble, especially for one so new. In the May/June 2003 issue, I reviewed enthusiastically the recording Lo, the full final Sacrifice (Finzi), which also contains the Britten Ceremony of Carols and some shorter works. This new disc displays the same superior choral sound and interpretation.
I have heard the Pergolesi performed just by two soloists, but the use here of soloists and chorus in different movements provides good variety of sound. The eminent Emma Kirkby and Catherine Denley sing eloquently.
The program opens with the motet 0 Euchari (Kirkby and chorus) by Hildegard of Bingen, addressed to the third-century missionary St. Eucharius, who became Bishop of Trier. Following the Pergolesi are seven motets by Lallouette, M.-A. Charpentier, Dering, and Monteverdi, with the soloists joining the choir in the sumptuous Confitebor Terzo alla Francese of Monteverdi.
All of the performers understand the idiom and its requirements; performance practice is scrupulous. The recording, made at the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St. Alban, has superb sound and balance. Full texts, brief notes, and biographies are provided. Again, I recommend this disc most highly.
Victor Hill, Ph.D.
Sounds Baroque
Terence Charlston plays the IOFS organ in St Saviour’s Church, St Albans
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - April 2006
IOFS stands for the International Organ Festival Society; its organ was built by Peter Collins, who dedicated it as "A homage to Andreas Silbermann." The 11/27 specification reflects the work of Andreas Silbermann and of the French branch of the Silbermann family. Tuning is at A=440 in a temperament after Vallotti. For a handy reference, full registrations used are listed along with extensive notes.
The performances here are of the highest quality, but the primary interest is in the sound of the organ since almost all of the selections are standard works; exceptions are the opening Toccata secunda of Georg Muffat and Kirnberger's intriguing Musical Circle. The latter is an excursion through all 12 minor keys (and many major keys) in one movement, a means of checking tuning and temperament.
Other selections heard are the Purcell Voluntary in G major, the Kyries and Benedictus of the Couperin Parish Mass, four works of J. S. Bach (including the "Dorian " Toccata and Fugue), Böhm Prelude and Fugue in C major (a delicious piece!), Sonata in A minor of C.P.E. Bach, and two Stanley Voluntaries. The playing is as idiomatic as the instrument,and the sound is crystalline. Highly recommended.
Victor Hill, Ph.D.
Church Music Quarterly - March 2006
The instrument used for this recording was built in 1989 for the International Organ Festival Society (IOFS) by Peter Collins. Its design was inspired by the organs of Andreas Silbermann and the French branch of the Silbermann family. It has two manuals often stops each and a pedal department of six stops, and its gentle tones caress the ear and are as far removed from the chiffy and shrill sounds of certain 'neo-Baroque' organs of the 1960s and 1970s as they could be. The organ is versatile, too. Terence Charleston convincingly performs music by German, French and English composers: Muffat, Purcell, Couperin, Bach, Kirnberger, Böhm C P E Bach, and Stanley are all represented -and the music of other periods (Mendelssohn, Hindemith, Leighton) would be sure to sound good on this organ, too. Terence Charlston brings the music to life with playing that is strongly rhythmic, but not inflexibly so. His articulation is clean and musical, and his ornamentation is appropriate and never fussy, as exemplified by a moving rendition of the Benedictus from Couperin's Messe pour les Paroisses. Thanks to his sensitivity, musical commitment to the pieces, and evident enjoyment of playing the music by every one of the composers on the disc, Charlston persuades the listener that the organ music of lesser Baroque composers can be no less worthy of our attention than the masterpieces of J S Bach and Couperin. No small achievement!
Christopher Maxim
The Organ - Number 335
International Organ Festival Society's organ in St Saviour's is a deliberate copy of the work of Andreas Silbermann by Peter Collins. As such, it is much used and well renowned for baroque music. This is evident from the present recording. Charlston gives us a repertoire combining the music of J.S. Bach (the Dorian - where the balance was excellent -and some chorale preludes), Couperin, Stanley and Purcell, with lesser contemporaries such as Muffat, Boehm, Kirnberger and C.P.E. Bach. The organ proves itself to be very versatile, though not unexpectedly so, given the Franco-German influences of the builder to whom Collins is paying homage. There is no style or registrational requirement that the organ cannot accommodate, it seems. I particularly enjoyed the Couperin and the way in which the reeds fell into line. Even the English pieces worked well. The Tierce en tailed in the Bach prelude was a wonderful sound. Kirnberger's Musical circle was new to me -best summed up as a cornet voluntary using just about every key on a well-tempered clavier! I found Charlston's playing rather dry and academic, but there is much on the disc that I did enjoy in terms of registration and repertoire.
DB
Cathedral Music
Terence Charlston presents a fascinating cross-section of Baroque organ music ranging from well-known it works by JS Bach (Dorian Toccata and Fugue) and two Stanley voluntaries, to less familiar pieces by Georg Böhm, CPE Bach and Georg Muffat. The two-manual organ (after the style of Andreas Silbermann) copes well with the varied musical styles of the period and the recorded sound is clean and well-focussed. I found the softer combinations of sounds particularly pleasing, for instance in the Couperin Benedictus from the Messe pour les Pariosses. Organ aficionados will be interested to see the list of registrations used for each piece; and Kirnberger's Musical Circle (an intriguing exploration of all the minor keys) demonstrates the temperament of the IOFS organ to good effect. Right from the opening moment, it is clear that this is stylish playing from a real expert of this period.
Julian Thomas
Sounds Spontaneous
Improvisations Through the Church’s Year by Malcolm Archer and David Bednall at the organ of Blackburn Cathedral
Church Music Quarterly - March 2006
Extending from Advent to the feast of Christ the King and embracing each of the major seasons and feasts of the Church's year, this disc draws together improvisations inspired, not just by the occasions themselves, but (in all but two cases) by well known melodies associated with them, such as Veni Emmanuel for Advent, Ubi caritas for Maundy Thursday and Llanfair for Ascension. Malcolm Archer and David Bednall show themselves highly imaginative, sometimes fearless, improvisers. In general, Malcolm Archer's improvisations tend to be the more 'rounded' and conventional, sounding like notated compositions; while David Bednall's tend to be more experimental. That is not to suggest that one musician is better than the other, but listeners might possibly find themselves preferring the improvisations of one or the other, depending on their own tastes. On a disc like this, having improvisations by two men of differing musical personalities lends variety to the programme and thus makes the listening experience all the more enjoyable. Both organists have the ability to create convincing musical structures and to conjure-up magical sound-worlds, drawing upon the full spectrum of colours that the organ of Blackburn Cathedral has to offer.
Christopher Maxim
Cathedral Music
You could say this disc serves two purposes. Firstly, there's the obvious appeal of hearing music moulded into shape on the spur of the moment. And indeed each track is a delight: most are based on Gregorian chant including Victimae Paschali lasting nearly 14 minutes!) or other well-known tunes. Those dealing with Lent and Palm Sunday are free meditations. Equally, however, the disc carries a more serious message. David Bednall”s comment in the cover-notes that improvisation in the UK is all too often “regarded as mere 'filling-in', a form of liturgical wallpaper whose function is simply to cover the sound of moving feet” is not unfair. “Sounds Spontaneous” then, sets out to prove that things don't have to be like that. And without suggesting that organists of the said crime are going to transform their playing overnight into something of the standard here, the disc may well prompt many to review the role of improvisation to enhance worship in the service as a whole. Track 6, for example – Lent - is a free meditation on Luke 4: 1-13 recounting Jesus' temptation in the wilderness. The magnificent Blackburn Cathedral organ provides a colourful sound palette.
Martin Wolf
The American Organist
Malcolm Archer, newly of St. Paul's Cathedral, and David Bednall, associated with Wells Cathedral, here combine their expertise, and exercise it on the extravagant Blackburn Walker. This is quickly becoming a favorite instrument of Lammas Records, and deservedly so. At tutti, there is almost five full seconds of decay in the room, and the open siting of the divisions allows all sounds great and small to be heard clearly. The reeds are strong, the strings plangent, the flues cool. A good organ in a good room equals a good start. The artists are obviously familiar with it; if in fact these are what they appear to be - that is, true improvisations - then this is indeed a “how-to” on how to improvise. As an organizing device (every pun intended), they have used mostly chant tunes illustrating the church calendar from Advent through Christ the King Sunday. Each “composition” follows the guideline they set for themselves which is “... Liturgical improvisation at its best should reflect and enhance the mood and meaning of the occasion and season.” There are large and small pieces, fast and slow, major and minor, rhythmic and still, grave and triumphant, calm and agitated.. “Innovative” is far too limited a word for these performances. One after the other, they tantalize and fulfil, producing the unexpected and the foregone, leading to a true sense of both occasion and season. There are preludes, postludes and interludes, all created at the moment with the excitement that attends creation. And never an insecure moment intrudes. From less than two minutes for All Saints to more than 13 minutes of improvisation for Easter, this entire recording is a bounteous treasure for anyone who values this art, this skill, this... creation? Heartily recommended.
Paul Aldridge
In His Temple - the music of Sir Edward Elgar
The Choir and Organ of St Paul’s, Rock Creek Parish, Washington DC USA
Church Music Quarterly - September 2006
It is very clear that this choir and its home have started 'going places' in recent years. When the building was restored in 2004, a new organ was installed by the American Dobson firm which 'thinks like a large organ, even though it is relatively small'.
This disc consists of just some of the masterpieces that Elgar wrote, ranging from delightful miniatures (Ave verum corpus and 0 salutaris hostia) to giant anthems (Great is the Lord and Give unto the Lord). The most effective and moving singing is in the miniatures, which contain many sublime moments and are elegantly handled by the eight singers and our previously mentioned largethinking-but-small organ. In the large pieces, I feel that the singers cope admirably, but one yearns for a richer and significantly larger sound. In any case, the quality of the sostenuto is worthy of note, as is the standard of playing from both organists.
Will Dawes
The Organ - Number 335
The sleeve notes begin: 'Elgar's sacred choral music possesses the same innate qualities so admired today in his orchestral music, namely an unerring sense for musical development and drama, allied to a glorious ear for melody. This selection follows him from early settings for the Roman Catholic liturgy... right through to his heyday as the Master of the King's Musick' I agree with the comments made. This is typical Elgar with that wonderful sense of nobility and 'Englishness’ about his writing. The big works dominate in terms of grandeur -'Great is the Lord’, ‘Give unto the Lord,' 'Te Deum' and the first movement of the Organ Sonata, but the smaller pieces all contribute to the overall effect of this disc. There are some rollicking accompaniments -brilliantly played by Neil Weston, who conjures some wonderful sounds from a smallish two-manual. Try track 7 -'0 salutaris hostia'-for example, and 1 think you will hear what I mean! Strangely, I found Graham Elliott's performance of the Sonata less convincing, though his choral direction was excellent, with a wonderful dynamic range being obtained from the choir, who clearly loved the music. There were times when the sound appeared distant, thought the balance was never in question.
DB
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians
Well, it's not quite all of "the music of Elgar," but it's a splendid selection, including some old favorites and some more rare offerings. I confess to being an Elgar enthusiast of long standing, so I loved every track of this recording. It opens with the extended Great Is the Lord, with a mellifluous solo by bass Douglas Bumey. The familiar Ave verum corpus features a sensitive solo by soprano Greta Getlein. In all of the choral works this choir of only eight singers moves from intimate sound to a chorus that sounds more full than just eight voices. A small jewel, new to me, is the short but compelling Doubt Not Thy Father 's Care, which would grace any Choral Evensong after what we call "The Third Collect." Graham plays the first movement of the Sonata in G (a wise choice since my own experience is that the second and fourth movements require three manuals, which the two-manual 2004 Dobson organ does not have). He takes it at a brisk tempo, but it works under his hands and feet. Full texts, the organ specification, and biographies are included. Producer Philip Cave and the always reliable recorder and editor Lance Andrews deserve high praise for the fidelity of this recording.
Victor Hill Ph. D
Musicweb
Elgar’s choral music divides into two periods. In his early days when he was trying to earn a living in Worcester he wrote a number of pieces for St. George’s Roman Catholic Church. Once he was famous he wrote for larger-scale Anglican occasions. Because of this religious divide, it is not just Elgar’s maturing style which differs between the two groups of pieces. The early ones were written to suit the abilities of the local church choir and to match the musical expectations of Roman Catholic singers and congregation.
As a result, Elgar’s early choral pieces are easily written off as slight, especially when compared to a major piece like Great is the Lord, which was written about the same time as the Violin Concerto. But, like Elgar’s early salon pieces, the early sacred music has great melodic charm and more than satisfies the needs of its performers; witness the continued use of the motets in Roman Catholic churches today. Elgar was sufficiently proud of his early Latin motets to revise three of them and issue them as his Op. 2. These are the Ave Verum, Ave Maria and Ave Maris Stella. Unfortunately, the choir of St. Paul’s Church, Rock Creek, Washington DC choose to omit the Ave Maris Stella setting, which seems a shame, especially on a disc with a running time of less than 60 minutes.
This repertoire has already been recorded by the choir of St. John’s College, Cambridge on a Naxos disc which has been very well received. The present one will attract interest partly because the choir is not English although their musical director, Graham Elliott, was previously Master of the Music at Chelmsford Cathedral. Another attraction might be that the choir is mixed (women and men), though the women produce a sound which is light, clear and bright and has elements that could be called boyish.
The choir is shown off at its best in the early Latin pieces. Here they respond well to the music’s charm and point up its sophistication without overdoing things. The solo in the Ave Verum is well taken by soprano Greta Getlein. These pieces also suit the size of the choir which numbers just eight professional singers.
In addition to the Ave Verum and Ave Maria from Elgar’s Op. 2, the choir also includes two settings of O Salutaris Hostia written in the 1880s. Again, these are charming settings which mix approachability and sophistication and the choir is shown off well in them.
Where I was less convinced was in the later English items - the Psalm settings Great is the Lord and Give unto the Lord, and the Te Deum and Benedictus. These are all bigger boned, designed for a larger group of singers and imbued with the feel of Elgar’s later symphonic and choral styles; Give unto the Lord was originally scored for orchestra, organ and choir. The choir sing very musically with a good feel for the shape and style of Elgar’s phrases. What I missed was the amplitude of tone that a larger body of singers would bring to the music. Admirable though these performances are, for me there were just too many moments when I was aware that I was listening to just eight singers and that they were having to work hard.
Part of the raison d’être of the disc is to show off the versatility of the church’s new organ, so Graham Elliott plays the first movement of Elgar’s organ sonata. This was written for a much larger organ and it says much for their 2004 Dobson Organ that Elliott’s performance was able to be so convincing. I’m sure there are people who will miss the sound of a bigger organ in this piece, but my own concerns were more over the excerpting of just the first movement. By and large I prefer to hear works whole.
This is in many ways an admirable disc. That the choir are able to tackle such large-scale pieces says much for them and for the organ. If you love Elgar’s sacred music then think about acquiring this disc as a companion to compare and contrast with the admirable disc from St. John’s College.
Robert Hugill
Sounds of Fotheringhay
Malcolm Archer plays the Vincent Woodstock organ at St Mary and All Saints Church, Fotheringhay
Church Music Quarterly - March 2007
**
Malcolm Archer plays the Vincent Woodstock organ Lammas, LAMM 191D For this CD Malcolm Archer swapped the lofty acoustic of St Paul's Cathedral for this more intimate setting at St Mary and All Saints, Fotheringhay in Northamptonshire where there is a two manual organ built by Vincent Woodstock in 2000 Archer has twenty-six stops to play with for this programme of works by Stanley, Travers, Sweelinck, Buxtehude and Bach. For each he follows appropriate or prescribed registrations to good effect; phrasing is also precise throughout. In four movements from Couperin's Messe pour les Couvents he shows off some of the instrument's contrasting sound colours; the'Elevation' (Tierce en taille) is especially effective. The gradual build-up of sound texture in Buxtehude's Ciacona in E minor works particularly well, though Archer does not let rip on this instrument until the finale -a performance of J S Bach's Prelude and Fugue in E flat which is given definite élan.
Stuart Robinson
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - April 2006
The 11/ 18 Woodstock organ (Op.22, 2000) sounds like much more than its modest specification. The Great consists of a full chorus plus stopped diapason, dulciana, and trumpet. The Swell is simply a five stop comet (with a gemshorn as the 2'). Under the hands of Malcolm Archer, whom 1 consider one of the finest organists in Britain today, the all-Baroque program shines with sonic joy. Archer opens with a charming Sonatina in D minor by the late 1711-century German composer Christian Ritter. Two English Voluntaries follow, a four-section one by John Stanley and an adagio-cum-trumpettune of John Travers. Then come four movements from the François Couperin Parish Mass-the Élevation Tièrce en taille is a special favorite of mine, and 1 greatly admire Archer's performance, even though 1 like to do much more with notes inégales than he does. 1 think of the Sweelinck Variations on "Unter der Linden Grüne " as essentially a harpsichord work, but this secular piece may have been performed on an organ recital at the Oude Kerk, and it works quite convincingly here. Three works of Buxtehude (Ciacona in E minor, Ein feste Burg, and one of the Komm, heiliger Geist preludes) complete the program, along with three of J. S. Bach (Fugue a la Gigue; 0 Mensch, bewein; Prelude and Fugue in E-flat). Archer's own notes illuminate the program. It's nice to have an informal photo of him at the organ along with the biography. His playing is exemplary throughout: secure, nuanced, and informed. Vincent Woodstock and Lance Andrews have captured the charming sound of this elegant small instrument with faithfulness and presence.
Victor Hill, Ph.D.
The Organ - Number 335
The organ by Vincent Woodstock installed in 2000 has two manuals and pedal, 15 speaking stops, and mechanical action throughout. Voiced with baroque works in mind,this new recording gives a very fine indication of the qualities of the instrument with works ranging from Ritter and Couperin to more familiar pieces by Bach and Buxtehude. Sweelinck's Variations on Unter der Linden Grune are particularly appealing, and the Bach works well. The organ produces a fine steely top but warmth where it is needed in the mid and lower registers. If I am less convinced by the Couperin it is only because my personal taste is towards a more florid French baroque sound whereas this is understandably more conservatively North-German! Nonetheless this gives us an excellence sense of the instrument and its merits.
BH
Musicweb
The wonderful 15th century church of Fotheringhay in Northamptonshire, received a new organ in 2000, built by Vincent Woodstock.
Conceptually it is difficult to quantify the instrument, and although much is written about it in the booklet, none of it concerns the basic concept. Superficially it seems stuck in the ‘neo-classical plus swell box’ mould typical of the artistic crisis which the vast majority of British organ builders have found themselves in for twenty years or more. Here the inevitable swell box (balanced!) houses just a cornet décomposée! However, I’m happy to report that on the basis of this recording, the conceptual fuzziness proves less important than the fine tonal qualities of much of the instrument. I was especially delighted with the principal chorus; there is a real singing quality to the principals, and the mixture seems very intelligently composed and voiced. The latter stop is calm and never threatens to tire the ear. The plenum is underpinned by an excellent fractional-length pedal reed. The trumpet seems to have too much of a solo characteristic for such a modest scheme. Archer doesn’t use it in the plenum at all (tellingly one suspects), except in the Dialogue sur les Grands Jeux of Couperin where the mixture of course isn’t employed. It proves a pleasing solo stop in the English Voluntaries. The flutes have some real beauty. Perhaps most impressive though, is that Vincent Woodstock has made a winding system which creates a vocal quality I’ve barely heard from a modern British builder! Congratulations!
Malcolm Archer, recently appointed organist of St Paul’s Cathedral, plays a programme of English, German and French music dating from between the late 16th and late 18th centuries. His playing is neat and well-controlled, with some very nice ornamentation. The most successful tracks are the English voluntaries and the Ritter Sonatina, long championed by Gustav Leonhardt, which is presented with a pleasing idiomatic freedom. However in order to become a really first-rate player of this literature Archer needs to become far more aware of the natural grammatical accents inherent in baroque music. His approach can be nicely summarised with a brief analysis of the Buxtehude Ciaconna. Firstly the pedal ostinato is played rather too legato to shape the bar effectively. Secondly his touch is not sophisticated enough for him to avoid the placing of accents on the smaller note-values, especially when the movement is in semiquavers. Here the feeling is very much of six impulses in the bar instead of three - or even one depending on how you look at it. The - unnecessary - manual changes, as throughout the disc, occur with a shortening of the last note before the change, frequently resulting in an accent on a weak part of the bar. I have also some small textual issues; Mr Archer should consult Michael Belotti’s Buxtehude edition.
Elsewhere the grammatical problem presents itself in other guises. During the third variation of the Sweelinck for instance the non-decorated right hand (playing the theme) becomes almost completely legato while the left hand plays the semi-quavers in contrast to the articulation of the theme at the outset. (Track 8, 2’56). Other issues I must mention are the strange added manual change for the third material in the famous E flat Prelude of Bach, and the rallentandos at the end of each section of the fugue which destroy the relationship between the time-signatures. Why, incidentally in 2005 does the English organ fraternity still insist on its silly tradition of giving the E flat Fugue its turn-of-the 20th century nickname based on an erroneous association with Croft’s hymn tune?
In general the surprisingly fine organ makes this an interesting release, and Archer’s playing, whatever my small gripes, presents it well enough; he is after all an excellent musician, and rightly one of the most highly respected figures in English Cathedral music.
Chris Bragg
Sounds Thrilling
Stephen Farr plays the organ in Blackburn Cathedral
The American Organist - March 2007
Lammas apparently intends to make an impressive series based on this instrument, and it is appropriate so to do. It is a unique organ, lovable by any devotee of Gallic music. The instrument has been spoken of favorably here before and there is no need to adjust that view. It is situated in an extremely reflective space that makes it sound even larger than it is, and it is no small installation to begin with. The room is part of the organ; the organ is part of the room. It is perfectly fitting, then, to use it to produce this 63-plus minutes of French inspired sounds. There are only two pieces on the disc: Duruflé's classic Suite, Op. 5, and David Briggs's Symphony "Missa pro defunctis," a work commissioned by the performer "... as an 'hommage' . . . " to Duruflé. Like the Suite, the Symphony defies verbal description and simply has to be heard. Farr performs the seven movements of this creative music with assurance, grace, and grandeur. The instrument is quite easily capable of the "Frenchness" of it. If there is such a thing as a "perfect" match of music and instrument, this may be it. If it's of particular interest to you, try it. If not, listen anyway - the organ alone could convert you.
Paul Aldridge
Church Music Quarterly
The organ-symphony genre is in the safe hands nowadays of organistcomposers such as David Briggs who studied with Jean Langlais at Notre Dame. Briggs has developed a successful career as a composer and recitalist, and this work shows that improvisation (and composition for that matter) in the French style is very much in his blood. 'Missa pro defunctis', was commissioned and premiered by Stephen Farr (Organist of Guildford Cathedral) in 2004, 'en hommage' to an abandoned and lost oeuvre of the same title by Maurice Duruflé. And thrilling it certainly is: in the first movement the 'Requiem aeternam' plainsong is intoned in the pedals, under some typically slow scrunchy French chords played on full swell with the box closed. It isn't long before the build up! There are seven movements of contrasting moods. If you enjoy the sonorities of Langlais and Duruflé then you will like this. The work is paired with an outstanding performance of Duruflé's splendid Suite Op. 5. Parr explores the full tonal range of the instrument at Blackburn Cathedral in this excellent recording. Sounds Thrilling is an accurate title.
Stuart Robinson
The Organ No 335
Considering the number of new commissions for organ music it is surprising how few of them get recorded. All the more welcome then is Stephen Farr's performance of David Briggs' Symphony Missa pro defunctis. Commissioned by the organist in 2003, it was premiered at St Davids Festival in 2004 and subsequently given a number of performances both in the UK and abroad. Readers will already have seen the reviews and articles about the work in the magazine so no further information is needed at this point. Given David Briggs’ breath-taking opening recital in Blackburn Cathedral it was not surprising that the organ was chosen as the right one for this first recording of his work, with Stephen Farr bringing his own enthusiasm and insight into the new work. As if this were not enough the recording also includes Duruflé's familiar Suite Op5. Listening to the whole CD straight through the Duruflé is a pleasing but highly satisfying desert after the main course.
BH
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - January 2006
Once again, recordings reviewed this month have a personal connection. I was with Lance Andrews (who is Lammas Records) in York during the preparation of this disc, to which the adjective thrilling applies accurately, and I have been eagerly awaiting its release. Here we have two large works, one by Duruflé and one inspired by his work.
The Symphony "Missa pro defunctis "was commissioned from the brilliant young British composer David Briggs by Stephen Farr. As the notes explain, this is an "hommage" to the solo organ Requiem that Duruflé had begun to sketch before he turned to the choral work that is now so widely known and performed. One hears overtones of the choral Mass here and there, notably in the incorporation of plainsong motifs, but the organ work is fully original. The seven movements are loosely linked to texts from the Requiem Mass (Kyrie, Domine Jesu Christe, etc.), but they stand on their own as pieces for a large and Romantic French organ. I find the style consistently compelling, even as it shifts from understated to pleno and from rich tone clusters to engaging cantabile. This 2003 composition should become one of the major virtuoso vehicles of our concert programs.
The companion work is the deservedly familiar Suite, Op.5, of Duruflé. Here, as in the Symphony, Farr demonstrates not only a transcendental technique, but an extraordinary affinity for the French style of the period.
The liner includes Farr's own notes, a biography, and extended details about the organ (including the role in its history played by our AAM colleague John Bertalot). Lance Andrews has done an exceptional job of managing the enormous dynamic range with consummate clarity. This recording is simply not to be missed by anyone who loves the idiom.
Victor Hill, Ph.D.
Tower, Washington DC
Most organ enthusiasts know David Briggs as one of today's finest organ virtuosos and improvisers, but this release proves beyond a doubt that he's also a great composer for that instrument as well. The symphony presented here was commissioned by the soloist on this disc, Stephen Farr, and for a very interesting reason. The great, French church musician Maurice Durufle was working on a suite for organ based on the plainsong Missa pro defunctis when he got a commission for his now, world famous requiem (later dedicated to the memory of John F. Kennedy). At that point he abandoned the suite and incorporated what he had done into the new composition. Durufle was a truly remarkable composer and anyone familiar with his music would have to agree that it's a shame he wrote as little as he did. Farr must have felt that way and his fascination with the thought of a lost Durufle work prompted him to ask Briggs for a "homage" piece honoring it. Well, he came through in "grand orgue" fashion! His seven movement "Missa pro defunctis" symphony is a masterpiece, and right in keeping with the many, romantic, French composer-organists he's championed at the keyboard for so many years. The spirits of Charles-Marie Widor, Louis Vierne, Marcel Dupre, Pierre Cochereau, and of course Maurice himself, all waft through this opus; but, in the grand scheme of things it's a unique Briggs creation. Very appropriately the disc is filled out with a magnificent rendition of Durufle's ever popular "Suite, Op. 5." This release is entitled "Sounds Thrilling" and, if anything, that's an understatement, because, quite frankly, organ CDs don't get any better than this. The instrument is superb, the performances, exemplary and the sound, to die for! Having heard it you'll undoubtedly want to try some of the other discs in the Lammas label's "Sounds..." series.
Bob McQuiston
Sigfrid Karg-Elert - Symphonic Canzonas
Gough Duo
Organ: Rupert Gough
Violin: Rachel Gough
Soprano: Natalie Clifton-Griffith
The Organ - Number 335
Karg-Elert is of course well known to countless generations of organists around the world. But I strongly suspect that his renown is based on a relatively small number of pieces of which Nun danket-included on this recording -is the single jewel in an undeservedly small crown. This disc is especially welcome, then, for it shows us so much more of this prolific man's output. We begin with a Symphonic Chorale (opus 87/1) in which Rupert Gough demonstrates his mastery of the instrument and the period. Here we have an excellent match of technique, interpretation and registration. Playing like this cannot be bettered. The disc ends with a second Symphonic Chorale (87/3) but this time with soprano and violin added. In between times, we have a mixture of organ, organ and violin, organ and soprano, and all three. I was captivated by much of this music, with the composer treating the violin and voice as additional solo stops, intertwined most effectively with the other registers. The lyric chromaticism is most especially, with many shades of Richard Strauss -as for example in opus 66/1-3 which I hope will receive many more performances. The pieces for violin and organ were particularly impressive, and the Gough Duo clearly enjoyed playing this music. I was less impressed by the soprano, whose lack of variety of tone and over-vibrato detracted from the smoothness of the lines. This was a pity, as the music for the trio was some of the most moving: I defy anyone not to be moved by the opening of track 3! Highly recommended, despite some reservations about the singing. I hope that more volumes of Karg-Elert's music for these combinations will follow.
DB
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - December 2005
With the exception of the ubiquitous Nun danket alle Gott, this program unearths some elegant and rarely performed works. The notes refer to the composer's "association with the Avant-Garde," but this music sounds quite conservative to 2005 ears. Only two of the works recorded here would likely be called "symphonic canzonas," but all are worthy of hearing. Sphärenmusik and Ich steh an deiner Krippe hier, for voice, violin, and organ would charm your Christmas Eve congregations. The Sanctus and Pastorale for violin and organ are elegant pieces; find the scores and a good string player!
Clifton-Griffith has a clear, limpid, lyrical voice -just a delight to hear. The Gough duo have superlative technique and a genuine sense of the Karg-Elert style. Rupert uses the enormous (142-stop) John Compton organ at the Basilica of St. Gregory the Great, Downside Abbey Church, with sensitivity and taste.
Thoughtful notes and full texts (English translation only) are augmented by biographies and full specifications of the organ. The sound is true and admirably balanced. I've never been much of a fan of Karg-Elert, but this disc might change my thoughts!
Victor Hill Ph.D
Musicweb
This recording of Karg-Elert’s so-called Symphonic Canzonas is a triumph for all concerned.
The repertoire on this disc is unusual and yet should be so much better known one feels. Sigfrid Karg-Elert is best known as a prolific composer of organ music, but it was news to me, I must confess, that he had also written music for various combinations of organ, soprano and violin. The wonderfully melodic shorter settings of 17th and 19th-20th century religious texts, mostly strophic, are particularly attractive. The musical style can be compared to that of Reger, but Karg-Elert’s sweeter harmonic language, chromatic without becoming saturated in endless modulatory twists, and his more human feel for emotional gesture, and tension-building, remind me, in a way, more of Richard Strauss. His use of the organ as an accompanying force is extremely imaginative. Of the shorter settings, four are scored for violin, soprano and organ, and the beautiful ‘Abendstern’ for soprano and organ alone. Much of the musical material is derived from Lutheran Chorales; ‘Vom Himmel Hoch’ is a setting of the whole melody, ‘Ich steh an deiner Krippe hier’ presents the melody with only minor alternation in the latter verses. ‘Sphärenmusik’ also quotes ‘Vom Himmel Hoch’ extensively.
Perhaps the most remarkable work on the disc is the Symphonic Chorale, ‘Nun ruhen alle Wälder’ featuring all three performers. The work begins with the organ alone which comments, in improvisatory fashion, on the opening four verses of the text. The violin enters, after nearly seven minutes of music, and the voice enters finally some two minutes later with the text of verse 7. The subsequent fantasy, during which the Cantus Firmus is passed between the forces, concludes with the organ alone; the final calm section including a quote from the famous Lullaby of Brahms.
The disc also includes two solo organ works, including the famous ‘Nun Danket alle Gott’ op 65 op 59, and two works for violin and organ, both ravishing, but perhaps the Pastorale could have been a little more succinct.
Rupert Gough’s organ playing is marvellous, with a tremendous sense of colour and atmosphere and a wonderful ear for the challenging acoustic. His choice of organ is ingenious, the big 1931 Compton at Downside Abbey is one of the most extended non-theatre organs ever built I suspect, (142 stops!), providing with its total enclosure (in three boxes), an almost inexhaustible range of kaleidoscopic colours and dynamic flexibility. It is both the ideal instrument for the literature and the ideal accompanying tool for the soloists. Rachel Gough’s effortless and musical playing - what a wonderful sound, never drawing undue attention to itself - and the beautiful singing of Natalie Clifton-Griffith make this a real success-story. Perhaps the latter’s German vowels are just a little too anglicised?
The booklet is first rate with excellent notes by Anthony Caldicott, and the recorded sound is enchanting.
Very highly recommended.
Chris Bragg
Peace on Earth
Sacred and Secular Music by Orlando Gibbons
Truro Cathedral Choir
Church Music Quarterly
The Gibbons disc is a little unusual in that it features both sacred and secular works. They include unaccompanied pieces (Almighty and everlasting God, Hosanna to the Son of David etc.) and others that are accompanied on a chamber organ by Tickell. Of the choral pieces that use the organ, some are verse anthems (This is the Record of John n; 0 thou, the central orb; See, see the Word is incarnate), while others are for solo voice (The silver swan; Nay let me weep), or unison singing (e.g-Song 46) The Truro Cathedral Choir is well disciplined: the boys are clearly highly trained and the lay clerks have a pleasingly light tone. Sometimes, however, the boys sound rather mannered: an example of this being Rs that are, on occasion, rolled far more than is needful. One suspects that the style is intended to ensure maximum clarity of words in the acoustic of the cathedral, but it would have been better to moderate it for performances on disc. For me, the highlights of the disc are the organ solos that punctuate the programme. The Truro chamber organ is a sweetly toned instrument that enhances the sensitive performances by Robert Sharpe.
Christopher Maxim
Cathedral Music
There is something uniquely satisfying about the music of Orlando Gibbons, to this reviewer at any rate, and the Truro choir's singing is always rather special. Nor did this disc disappoint expectations; performances are vivid from singers clearly full of zest and enjoyment even if as a result some of the solo singing is only just within the bounds of good taste! One can have too much 'ghastly, good taste' anyway and even if the speeds are sometimes a little on the fast side one's attention is held throughout. The experiment of including a few secular consort songs is perfectly successful, the dividing line between sacred and secular being by no means clear-cut in Gibbons's day; and it is good also to hear amid more familiar fare Great Lord of Lords, If ye be, risen again with Christ and 0 thou the central orb,. and what fine music there is ill 0 God, the King of glory and 0 Lord in thy wrath rebuke me not. Are these still sung regularly in our cathedrals? So, add this one to your collection, and prepare to enjoy yourself.
Timothy Storey
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians - April 2006
Some of Gibbons' best-known sacred choral selections appear here along with the justly loved The Silver Swan (sensitively sung by treble Max Spreckley) and four instrumental offerings. The cathedral's 1997 Kenneth Tickell chamber organ is used throughout.
Other familiar Gibbons works include This is the record of John, 0 Thou the central orb, Hosanna to the Son of David, and 0 Lord in thy wrath.Less familiar are the exquisite verse anthems If ye be risen again with Christ and See, see the Word is incarnate with crystal clear contributions by the soloists. The touching lament Nay let me weep (text presumed to be by Sir Walter Raleigh) was probably written on the death from typhoid of Henry Prince of Wales in 1612; treble Patrick Windsor has just the right sound and inflection. Another fine treble, Benjamin Comeau, presents the somber What is our life? (text definitely by Raleigh). The choir is just as accomplished as are the various soloists: clean Renaissance tone, beautifully shaped phrases, thorough understanding of the idiom. The acoustical ambience is just right, and the sound is captured with admirable authenticity.
Victor Hill, Ph.D.
Musicweb
With its tranquil cover depicting a lake and hills at
sunset, "Peace on Earth" is an apt title for this excellent collection of music
from the marvelous English composer: Orlando Gibbons. From the beginning of the
disc I knew that this was going to be a winner. Max Spreckley, treble gives a
splendid rendition of "The Silver Swan"; sung many times at Madrigals at my old
school (MCS) in Oxford. You may possibly also recognize Song 1 as a hymn tune.
The stand-out piece is "This is the Record of John" and this is sung with great
feeling and sensitivity. Indeed the soloist Matthew Reeve¹s voice almost cracks
with emotion on the line "voice cries out in the wilderness". I've not heard it
bettered and have played this several times already and will return to it often.
Incidentally, this magnificent anthem was written for Dr. Laud who became
Archbishop of Canterbury and was executed in 1645. The autograph is in the
library of Christ Church, Oxford where the choir often sings Gibbons. This piece
is sung a week before Christmas.
The disc works well on several levels and I hope that it introduces people,
including visitors to Truro, to the wonders of Gibbons' art. The Choir is in
good voice throughout and the acoustic is well captured by the engineers. The
instrumentals are nicely played on a chamber organ although there may be people
out there who would prefer to hear virginals or harpsichord. In the piece "See
see the word", a recording I have by "The Clerkes of Oxenford" (Calliope), a
more "authentic" sound is achieved with viols and viola de gamba (unaccredited).
The atmosphere there is quite different from Truro where the counter-tenor and
choir are accompanied by the chamber organ.
I love the sound of treble and counter-tenor in these works. They sound very
good on a home system. The difference is that between a chapel choir and
cathedral; unless you're averse to the latter you'll enjoy this disc.
Mention must be made of very informative notes by David Cheetham. For example he draws attention to the anthem "O thou central orb" and that the "blissful amen" was sung after the blessing at Edward VII¹s coronation. As with some other works the choir sings words which were written well after Gibbons¹ time. I doubt, however if the choir in 1902 would have rendered the music any finer.
I love Gibbons' music and I am certain that any admirer of fine choral music will enjoy this CD. It works on three levels: a good listen to "chill out" and relax to; a fine statement by a splendid choir whom it would be lovely to hear in their own Cathedral; most of all it is a wonderful affirmation of the genius of Orlando Gibbons.
David R Dunsmore
Loving Shepherd
Hymns sung by the Choirs and Congregation of Blackburn Cathedral
Cathedral Music
This is a highly satisfying anthology, well sung by the many and various groups of musicians who make up the lively musical establishment at Blackburn. Particularly to be commended is the Young People's Choir, whose unaccompanied singing is quite delightful even if a little youthful immaturity is detectable in the vocal tone. The programme has been chosen imaginatively, the term 'hymn' having been widened to include choral music such as Let all the world (Vaughan Williams) and the Jubilate from the Collegium Regale service by Howells and old favourites rub shoulders with less familiar material. The quieter and more reflective interpretations are the most successful, for speeds are often too fast (the curse of BBC Songs of Praise strikes again) and there is a tendency to romp through such classics as Crown him with many crowns without much thought for the words; the Howells Hymn for St Cecilia also is also sung in a brisk matter-of-fact manner that releases nothing of the music's emotion. As for the brass arrangements, the less said the better, though fortunately the ubiquitous holy flute has a day off. Your reviewer's personal dislikes notwithstanding, this is a much better disc than most of its kind, well worth buying.
Timothy Storey
MusicWeb
This is an excellent collection of hymns in sometimes new arrangements.
We begin with Richard T