Choral music lovers who enjoy the English cathedral choir sound (of the adult mixed voice variety–no boy trebles, no male altos) and the highly melodic, rich-textured harmonic styles of composers such as Stanford, Willan, Vaughan Williams, and Rutter and who haven’t yet discovered the music of Jonathan Willcocks will certainly want to have this disc. Yes, the comparisons with Rutter in particular are more than obvious, but Willcocks has his own distinctive ideas, including a strong gift for melody and an ear for original concepts of word-setting (even of some very familiar texts such as Infant holy, The holly and the ivy, and God be in my head) that convince you that these new versions not only are worthy but important additions to the sacred music repertoire. The opening Magnificat is a sturdy if rather predictable setting, in full ceremonial style–brass, timpani, percussion, organ, full chorus–of the time-honored text with the addition of the “Hail Mary” sentences and the ancient poem “There is no rose”. Its highlight is a gorgeous version of the Et misericordia section for soprano solo with chorus and organ. Soprano Carys Lane (you may recognize her name from her recordings as a member of The Sixteen) sings this and several other solos with an almost ethereal beauty–clear, perfectly tuned, and heart-felt.
But the real gold on this disc is found in the music that follows the Magnificat: Three sea chanties (including an amazingly gutsy and clever setting of, I’m not kidding, “What shall we do with the drunken sailor”!); two lovely selections from Willcocks’ larger work, Christ is born, one of which is an ingenious and effective combining of the text “A spotless rose”, sung by soprano, with Kirkpatrick’s tune to “Away in a manger”; a very affecting In paradisum scored for upper voices; a lively new (Rutter-like) version of “The holly and the ivy” with trumpet, bells, and organ; and several more meditative, beautifully harmonized (also à la Rutter) hymnlike works. The choir is wonderful (observant listeners will recognize several of the singers’ names from the London professional choral music scene), and likewise the instrumental participants. As usual with Priory releases, the sound captures the full ambience of the venue (the Great Hall of University College School, Hampstead, London) while seating us in an ideal listening location. Highly recommended.
