High Flight
Bob CHILCOTT (b. 1955)
Oculi Omnium [2:23]
Even such is time (1993) [11:02]
High Flight (2008)* [5:48]
A Thanksgiving (2008)* [3:32]
Morten LAURIDSEN (b. 1943)
O Nata Lux (1997) [4:12]
O Magnum Mysterium (1994)** [6:33]
Eric WHITACRE (b. 1970)
Lux Aurumque (2000) [3:42]
Cloudburst (1992)** [7:48]
This Marriage (2004) [2:45]
Alone (2011) [3:32]
The Stolen Child* (2007) [8:50]
The King’s Singers; The Concordia Choir/René Clausen
rec. St. Mary’s Church, Harrow, UK, 13-17 May 2011; St. Joseph’s
Church, Moorhead, MN, USA, 10 May 2010*, 2003** DDD
Texts and English translations included
SIGNUM CLASSICS SIGCD262 [60:10]
I must confess I have had this CD to review for quite some time and have found
it difficult to make up my mind about it. John Quinn reviewed it earlier for
this website and so I also refer you to his more detailed review.
Certainly the performances are all one would expect of the King’s Singers,
and the Concordia Choir provides a nice contrast. I would suggest, however,
that you should not listen to the whole CD all the way through, as there is
a certain sameness in the music. Everything is basically tonal, with all three
composers using close harmony in their works. As one would expect, Bob Chilcott
writes idiomatically for the King’s Singers, having been a longtime
member of that group (1985-97). I find his compositions here generally the
most attractive, from the simple, but beautiful Oculi Omnium - whose
composition date is not listed anywhere as far as I could tell - to the more
complex and rhythmically interesting Even such is time and High
Flight, The latter was composed for the King’s Singers and SATB
choir. The Concordia Choir, one of the best known of U.S. college choirs,
has a wonderful blend of voices and their diction is also exemplary for a
large choral group. They do full justice to Lauridsen’s most popular
piece, O Magnum Mysterium, even if it really didn’t need
another recording.
Three of the works on this CD are world premiere recordings: Whitacre’s
Alone, composed for the King’s Singers as a prelude to The
Stolen Child, and Chilcott’s A Thanksgiving as well as High
Flight. Eric Whitacre has quickly become one of America’s most popular
choral composers and this disc gives a good sampling of his choral output.
Lux Aurumque is undoubtedly his best known work and justifiably so
in its deceptively simple chording and close harmony. However, The Stolen
Child, written for the King’s Singers and the National Youth Choirs
of Great Britain, is a more complex work and leaves a deeper impression. The
earliest of his works here, Cloudburst, on the other hand, sounds rather
hokey with all its sound effects. The disc concludes with Chilcott’s
A Thanksgiving and well demonstrates with its wonderful blend of voices
the rapport the King’s Singers and Concordia Choir obviously had in
making this recording. The music here is rather typical of what’s being
composed these days for college and for the more accomplished church choirs.
It is harmonically conservative, yet maintains enough interest for singers
even if it is best taken in small doses by the listener.
The CD contains a rather thick booklet, which along with the texts, has comments
by each of the composers and photographs of the performers. I should point
out one editorial error that could irritate Minnesotans: the production details
list the recording location as in Moorhead, MS (which stands for Mississippi)
rather than MN (Minnesota)!
Leslie Wright
see also review by John
Quinn
The choral music here is well performed but is best taken in small doses.