Another Naxos compilation
and a very welcome one for several reasons.
Firstly, it features a top male choir
consistently on peak form. Secondly,
it allows us an opportunity to investigate
‘the best of the choir’s CDs of the
last few years. These have been of the
English choral tradition as exemplified
by Stanford and Howells - the staple
diet of any cathedral choir. This double
album will give an ideal guide to 20th
Century English Cathedral Music.
And what a glorious
tradition this is and very precious
too. This is Cambridge after all, the
home of so much English choral music
of the early 20th Century.
Each of these composers brought something
individual and special to the tradition
having in some cases been also associated
more with the concert hall than with
the cloister. Lennox Berkeley was a
devout Catholic as was Edmund Rubbra.
Both wrote symphonies and concertos
but their choral music was vital for
them. Some of it at least is still in
the repertoire. In fact when I was choirboy
we rarely sang either but now, as I
look through the Times Sunday Cathedral
music columns, both feature regularly.
Kenneth Leighton and
Peter Hurford are performed far more
in church than in the concert hall although
Leighton wrote three symphonies and
a fine cello concerto as well as other
works.
Gerald Finzi’s contributions
are outstanding and receive especially
superb performances. Perhaps if I had
to pick two works which succeed less
well and need more characterization
I might go for Walton’s Coronation Te
Deum which seems to be more prosaic
and formulaic than I had remembered.
Also Howells’ ‘Take him earth for cherishing’
needs to be more than just beautiful.
Also I must add Leighton’s Easter Sequence’
which, to my ears, also sounds predictable
with the requisite syncopated rhythms
representing Resurrection and Ascension.
Against that I should
add that the choir under Robinson’s
clearly focused direction makes other
pieces sound as you have never heard
them. One takes Britten’s Jubilate almost
for granted, but this is a sparkling
and very enjoyable performance which
brought it back to life. The Hymn to
St. Cecilia is often done by mixed choirs
so it is a refreshing change, and a
special one, to hear the boy trebles
ringing out ‘I only play, I only play’.
There are some surprises.
Look at the original discs. For example
on Rubbra disc I would possibly have
chosen a movement from the Saint Dominic
Mass and not the Tenebrae Nocturne.
However the latter is much less well
known and so is a good choice.
I was also pleasantly
surprised to find Finzi’s ‘Welcome sweet
and Scared Feast’ from that all-Finzi
disc.
A special recommendation
should go to the boy treble, Oliver
Lepage Dean who is so clear and yet
strong - a beautiful voice. It almost
seems as if VW had written ‘The Call’
especially for him.
Christopher Robinson’s
tenure at St. Johns ended in 2003 having
taken over from the late, great George
Guest. It was the latter who developed
the distinctive St. John’s sound and
although Robinson smoothed it out a
little it remains a unique contribution
to the recorded legacy of this repertoire.
At Naxos’s bargain
price these performances should be snapped
up and relished. Better still, get yourself
to Cambridge during Advent or Easter
and hear the choir for yourself.
There are excellent
notes on each composer and each work
in the twenty-four page booklet extracted
from the original CDs. All texts are
provided.
Gary Higginson