MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

REVIEW


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 

 

alternatively
CD: AmazonUK AmazonUS

Philip MOORE (b. 1943)
Awake Up My Glory - Choral and Organ Music
Awake up my glory (1994) [2:50]
Salve Regina (2008) [3:34]
O sacrum convivium (2001) [3:01]
All wisdom cometh from the Lord (1980) [9:28]
Three Pieces for Withycombe (organ solo) [6:42]
Thou art my life [5:37]
Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in B flat (The Third Service) [7:25]
Dance-Rondo (organ solo) [4:31]
The Song of the Roses (1986) [5:22]
In Memoriam (1987)* [15:52]
Cantate Domino and Deus Misereatur (Alternative Evening Canticles) [6:47]
*Susan Hamilton (soprano); Jonathan Vaughn (organ)
The Exon Singers/Matthew Owens
rec. Wells Cathedral, 1-3 January, 11-12 February 2009. DDD
Texts and English translations included
REGENT REGCD315 [71:15]

Experience Classicsonline



Philip Moore served with distinction as Organist and Master of the Music at York Minster from 1983 to 2008. This CD reveals him to be a fine composer also.

Perhaps it’s unsurprising that a man steeped in the English cathedral tradition – he served at Canterbury and Guildford cathedrals before moving to York – should make such effective settings of the Evening Canticles as are performed here. And how refreshing to find a setting of the too-rarely heard alternative canticles, Psalms 98 and 67. These were composed for Jesus College, Cambridge and it was at Moore’s suggestion that he set these canticles rather than the ‘Mag’ and ‘Nunc’ originally requested. The setting of Psalm 98 is jubilant and strongly rhythmical, culminating in an exuberant doxology, and it features an important organ part. The setting of Psalm 67 mixes passages of more reflective music with joyful sections; here the doxology is more inwardly prayerful in tone.

The standard ‘Mag’ and ‘Nunc’ texts themselves are also impressively set in Moore’s Third Service. These are alternatim settings and the polyphonic verses are closely related to the music of the chant sections. The music for both canticles has a timeless evening feel.

In Memoriam is for solo soprano accompanied by organ. In this extended piece Jonathan Vaughn provides a most sensitive accompaniment, as he does in several of the choral pieces, and he gives admirable support to the excellent soloist, Susan Hamilton. Moore has taken texts from a variety of sources, including the Salisbury Diurnal, the Book of Common Prayer and Psalm 84 and has woven them into a seamless whole. I greatly admired Miss Hamilton’s exemplary diction and her clear, focused tone. The nature of much of the music is reflective but one section (8:04 – 10:34), where Moore sets some lines by C L Drawbridge, is much more dramatic. My attention was also drawn to the concluding section (from 13:32), which is a short, ecstatic setting of the text ‘Holy is the true light’, and which closes with soft, radiant ‘Alleluias’, as the work began. In Memoriam is an eloquent, impressive piece and its appearance on disc, and in such a fine performance, is to be welcomed.

I should also mention that Jonathan Vaughn has two solo items. Three Pieces for Withycombe were written for the composer’s mother to play at her village church. They’re straightforward and nice pieces – no pedal parts – and the third one, ‘Postlude’ is a delight. As its title suggests, Dance-Rondo is rooted in dance rhythms. It’s very likeable and Jonathan Vaughn gives an excellent, crisp account of it.

Among the choral items, Salve Regina was written for The Exon Singers and it’s for unaccompanied SSATBB choir. Arch-like in form, the quiet opening and ending frame a more intense central section. O sacrum convivium, for SATB, is also unaccompanied. It’s a fine little composition, reflective and devotional in tone.

Though it lasts for less than ten minutes All wisdom cometh from the Lord is a significant piece. After a vigorous opening the music slows for a bass solo (2:14 – 4:42), beginning at ‘To whom hath the root of wisdom been revealed?’ The solo part contains a particularly magisterial phrase, first heard at the words ‘the Lord sitting upon his throne’, and repeated to different words a few moments later. The soloist, Christopher Sheldrake, sings with feeling. However, as I’ve noted on some other discs from Wells, he has too wide a vibrato for my taste and sometimes seems to push the tone. After the bass solo the vigorous opening music returns before the extended and rather beautiful closing section (from 6:04), beginning at ‘Teach me thy statutes’. This tranquil passage is dominated by a plainsong melody in the soprano line.

All wisdom cometh from the Lord is an impressive piece but so too are the others in this collection. This is music that reflects a lifetime’s experience of writing and performing music for voices and organ. The craftsmanship seems to me to be fastidious and the choice of texts is discerning and these texts frequently inspire a very eloquent musical response. Impressive too are the performances, with Matthew Owens once again showing what a fine choral trainer he is and drawing out committed singing from his excellent choir. All this music was new to me – most of the works are here recorded for the first time - but I enjoyed it very much. Philip Moore’s expertly written and very attractive music has been well served on this very welcome disc.

John Quinn

 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools






Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.