This disc is a kind of extended
edition of 'Songs of Praise', the long-standing programme
with religious music, broadcast by BBC Television on late
Sunday afternoons. As the title says, these hymns are amongst
the most popular, and they are frequently sung in the said
programme.
Their popularity also means they
are recorded regularly. Most people in Britain who are interested
in religious music will already own one or more discs with
these hymns. I wonder how many would want to add another
recording of the same hymns to their collection.
Perhaps audiences outside Britain
will be more interested in this release. After all, most
of them are probably not that familiar with hymns like these,
although some who have grown up in Protestant circles may
recognize some melodies which have their roots in Lutheran
Germany. These include 'Praise to the Lord, the Almighty',
whose melody is known with the text 'Lobe den Herren, den
mächtigen König der Ehren'. And some hymns have found their
way into hymn books in other European countries. But there
are also hymns which are hardly ever sung or even known outside
Britain. A good example is 'And did those feet in ancient
time', with its text "I will not cease from mental fight,
nor shall my sword sleep in my hand, till we have built Jerusalem
in England's green and pleasant land."
This disc gives a fairly good
idea of which hymns are most popular in Britain, but the
performance is perhaps a little out of step with everyday
practice. Choirs of boys and men - like the Choir of St George's
Chapel - are fortunately still quite common in Britain -
and should be treasured - but certainly not as they used
to be. A number of churches and cathedrals have admitted
girls into the choir, and they are either singing with the
boys or in alternation with them. And hymns like these are
normally sung with organ only, not with additional brass
instruments as on this disc.
Some people may enjoy the addition
of brass, and the Marlowe Brass Ensemble do play well, but
I don't like it very much, and would by far prefer just organ
accompaniment. I find the brass often rather obtrusive. Sometimes
they almost overpower the choir, as in some verses of 'All
people that on earth do dwell'. This is also due to the fact
that the choir lacks a very strong and powerful sound. I
would like a more robust sound, especially from the trebles.
I also noticed a slight wobble in some sections of the choir,
in particular the altos and tenors, which I find rather unpleasant.
For those who are not familiar
with hymns as they are sung in British churches and cathedrals
I recommend this disc. It is a way to get to know this repertoire
at a low price. Those who want to buy a top class performance
should look elsewhere. I would like some British choir or
vocal group to explore the collections of hymns which were
published in the 17th and 18th centuries, and which are referred
to in Keith Anderson’s notes.
Johan van Veen
see also review
by Göran Forsling