A Very English Christmas
Tenebrae/Nigel Short
James Sherlock (organ)
rec. 21-22 January 2015, Church of St Augustine, Kilburn, London
Texts included
Full track listing at the end of this review
BENE ARTE SIGCD902 [55:35]
It must be quite a challenge to put together an enticing Christmas
programme on CD. In his brief introductory note accompanying this new disc
Nigel Short admits that he had some initial misgivings but his enthusiasm
was fired by a discussion with one of Tenebrae's patrons and this disc is
the result. The aim has been to "provide a musical breath of fresh air come
Christmas time and also give us a chance to herald the extraordinary talents
of some of the most dedicated and less well-known individuals from the world
of English choral music in the 20th century." Thus, though we
find some familiar names and pieces in this programme, there are also
several items that may well be new to listeners, as they were to me.
Under the "familiar" heading would certainly come John Gardner's
Tomorrow shall be my dancing day but how many people are familiar
with the other two pieces by him in this programme? Actually, Tomorrow
shall be my dancing day was the one piece that disappointed me here.
Frankly, I've heard more energetic renditions. It seems to me that this
Tenebrae performance is more concerned with beauty of sound and as a result
anything to do with dancing gets overlooked. Sadly, the performance lacks
verve. However, that's the only criticism I would wish to make of this
programme. The other two Gardner carols are done very well indeed.
Balulalow is simply gorgeous, with a lovely soprano solo at the
start, while the forthright A gallery carol, in which Gardner sets
the same text that we've heard from Christopher Robinson earlier in the
programme, provides an upbeat finish to the disc.
Some of Peter Warlock's pieces are well-known too; indeed all the five
pieces included here are very fine. I was especially glad to encounter
As dew in Aprylle, which is less familiar to me than its
companions.
Several of the composers featured here are perhaps better known to us as
conductors. That's certainly true, so far as I'm concerned, of the
much-missed Richard Hickox. In fact, I'll admit that I didn't know he had
composed any music. His little piece, The Birds is a setting of
lines by Percy Dearmer. It's a charming, lilting composition with a discreet
organ accompaniment underpinning the singers. Christopher Robinson, the
distinguished Director of Music at St John's College Cambridge in the years
before his retirement, is represented by a setting of Rejoice and be
merry which is for the most part forthright and joyful. I enjoyed it.
Sir Philip Ledger presided over the music "down the road" from St John's, at
King's College. His happy setting of The Sussex Carol (On
Christmas night as it's billed here) is extremely familiar but Adam
lay ybounden may be less well-known. If so that's unjust because it's
excellent. Did he compose it for King's, I wonder? Simon Preston is
represented by three pieces and all are well worth hearing.
There are some much less familiar names among the list of composers
selected by Nigel Short. I don't quite classify Richard Lloyd among them for
quite a number of his pieces have been recorded and his music is regularly
sung in cathedrals. Nonetheless, the inclusion of Love came down at
Christmas, a delicate setting of words by Christina Rossetti, is more
than welcome. Philip Radcliffe was one of Lloyd's tutors at Cambridge in the
1950s. I've heard one or two of his pieces before but not Mary walked
through a wood of thorn. I'm very glad to have encountered it here;
this is a beautiful a capella setting.
The name of Jonathan Lane is unfamiliar to me and I will just say in
passing that it would have been nice to have some information about the
composers and music in the booklet; in that respect the documentation is
deficient. Lane's unaccompanied setting of There is no rose is
mostly gentle in tone and very welcome. In its gentleness it's more what I
would expect of a setting of these lines than the setting by Simon Preston
of the same text. Preston's piece has some lively episodes in it which took
me rather by surprise - in a good way; I admired his piece very much.
Another composer previously unknown to me is Alec Redshaw. His I sing of
a maiden is much simpler than the setting by Bax. I like Redshaw's
piece very much - which is not to say that I don't also like the Bax.
Redshaw's composition is gentle in tone and disarming. Richard Knight's
Come rock his cradle is a gently flowing piece for chorus with
organ. The melody is lovely and Knight's beguiling setting includes some
intriguing harmonic turns.
In summary, the programme has been shrewdly chosen and though it includes
a sprinkling of familiar pieces there is a pleasing amount of music that is
less well-known. More pleasing still, all the latter pieces prove to be well
worth hearing. It is probably superfluous to say that the performances by
Tenebrae are top class - but they are. The recording is good. Some may feel
that the singers are positioned slightly too close to the microphones but I
was happy overall with the sound. The documentation is satisfactory though,
as I suggested earlier, it would have been nice to learn something about the
composers - and their pieces - since quite a number are not exactly
household names.
John Quinn
Track-listing
Simon PRESTON I saw three ships
Simon PRESTON There is no rose
John GARDNER Tomorrow shall be my dancing day
Richard LLOYD Love came down at Christmas
Christopher ROBINSON Rejoice and be merry
Richard HICKOX The Birds
Peter WARLOCK Benedicamus Domino; Adam lay ybounden; I
saw a fair maiden; Balulalow; As dew in Aprylle,
Philip LEDGER Adam lay ybounden
Simon PRESTON on Christmas Day
Philip LEDGER On Christmas night
Arnold BAX I sing of a maiden
Paul EDWARDS No small wonder
Jonathan LANE There is no rose
Richard KNIGHT Come rock his cradle
Alec REDSHAWE I sing of a maiden
John GARDNER Balulalow
Philip RADCLIFFE Mary walked through a wood of thorn
John GARDNER A gallery carol
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