Review: Described as "phenomenal" (The Times) and "devastatingly beautiful" (Gramophone Magazine), the BBC Music Magazine Award award-winning choir Tenebrae, under the direction of Nigel Short, one of the world's finest vocal ensembles renowned for its passion and precision return to disc on Signum with a sumptuous album of Carols, Hymns and other celebratory works for Christmas. Among the composers to feature on this disc are John Gardner, Peter Warlock, Philip Ledger and Arnold Bax, A singer of great acclaim, Nigel Short was a member of the world-renowned vocal ensemble The King's Singers from 1994-2000. Upon leaving the group, he formed Tenebrae, a virtuosic choir that embraced his dedication to passion and precision.

Songlist: O All Ye Works of the Lord, The Tree of Life, Hymn to the Creator of Life, O Lord, How Manifold Are Thee, The Gift of Each Day, Believe In Life, Give the King Thy Judgements, O God, A Flower Remembered, The Quest, Psalm 150, Christ Is the Morning Star, All Bells in Paradise, Rejoice and Sing

Review: Choral fans will be very excited about the meeting of two of the most versatile musical minds of their generation, Rutter and Bennett in a CD that is Gramophone Magazine's Editor's Choice for May 2005 and on many lists for Choral disc of the year. The title work, "Sea Change," set to texts by Shakespeare, Andrew Marvell and Edmund Spenser, is 4 pieces, sometimes Britten-esque, dramatic, swirling, agitated, emotional, dissonant and always interesting. "A Farewell to Arms," written for the ensemble VocalEssence for a cappella choir and solo cello, are poignant poems of an old soldier's recollection of war. "A Good-Night " is a lovely motet written in memory of Linda McCartney. The last 8 tracks feature some of Bennett's most accessible works, which happen to be Christmas songs. "There is no rose," "Out of your sleep," "That younge child," "Sweet was the song," "Susanni," "Lullay mine liking" and "What sweeter music" are simply beautiful. The Cambridge Singers, directed by Rutter, are perfect, handling this difficult material with ease. "Sea Change" is a rare, very special recording!

Songlist: The Isle Is Full of Noises, The Bermudas, The Waves Come Rolling, Full Fathom Five, A Farewell To Arms, A Good-Night, Verses, Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, There Is No Rose, Out of Your Sleep, That Younge Child, Sweet Was the Song, Susanni, Lullay Mine Liking, What Sweeter Music, Puer Nobis

Review: Written in late 2002, in time for a Carnegie Hall performance, performed here by the renowned Cambridge Singers, Cantate Youth Choir and London Sinfonia, and conducted by the composer, the five movements of Rutter's "Mass," are a delight. Following are the lovely "Look at the World," "To every thing there is a season," the joyous "Wings of the Morning" and "A Clare Benediction." Then we have the uplifting "I will sing with the spirit," the flute-accompanied Musica Dei donum," "I my Best-Beloved's am," and finally "Come down, O Love divine." This is beautifully-performed music that fills us with joy and hope, the hope of the children.

Songlist: Mass of the Children:, -Kyrie, -Gloria, -Sanctus and Bendictus, Agnus Dei, -Finale, Look at the world, To every thing there is a season, Wings of the morning, A Clare Benediction, I Will Sing With The Spirit, Music Dei donum, I my Best-Beloved's am, Come down, O Love Divine

Review: Directed by John Rutter, this recording takes as its grand objective a collection of "hymns for all time." Drawn from the Anglican tradition without apology, many of these 21 compositions are accompanied, by anything from a single harp to the London Sinfonia Brass, though there are some a cappella chants. There is nothing stiff or abstract about these arrangements, however. The Cambridge mixed ensemble breathes a vitality into each note, and folk hymns such as "Be Thou My Vision" couldn't be lovelier. Those listeners who grew up singing these hymns in church will be especially fond of "Sing, Ye Heavens," but anyone can enjoy the purity of the sound of the Cambridge Singers.

Songlist: O God, Our Help In Ages Past, The King Of Love My Shepherd Is, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, Veni, Creator Spiritus, Lo! He Comes With Clouds Descending, Love Divie, All Loves Excelling, Pange Lingua, Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence, Vexilla Regis, Drop, Drop, Slow Tears, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, Christ the Lord is Risen Today, Be Thou My Vision, All Things Bright and Beautiful, Morning Has Broken, Amazing Grace, We Plough the Fields and Scatter, Glory to Thee, My God, This Night, The Day Though Gavest, Lord, Is Ended, Eternal God, Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation

Review: This tranquil program is a selection of pieces from classic Cambridge Singers recordings. From Gregorian chant through the twentieth century this CD includes Allegri's "Miserere," "Draw on Sweet Night" by John Wilbye, "Tantum Ergo" by Gabriel Faure and "What Sweeter Music" by John Rutter. Most of these pieces are a cappella, with the others being accompanied by the City of London Sinfonia. This recording is a great addition to a peaceful moment.

Songlist: Adoro Te Devote, Pie Jesu, Visita, Quaesumus Domine, Draw On, Sweet Night, O Can Ye Sew Cushions, The Silver Swan, Down By The Sally Gardens, In Manus Tuas, Miserere, Tantum Ergo, Justorum Animae, O Quam Suavis, Laudi Alla Vergine Maria, Alma Redemptoris Mater, What Sweeter Music

Review: Whether you have a couple dozen albums of English choral music or whether you're looking for an introduction to English choral music, this two CD collection is a must. This is all unaccompanied music, sung in a cathedral chapel acoustically suited for such music. The first disc has four primary sections: Music of the Latin Rite; Music of the Reformation; Music of the Restoration; and Anglican Revival and the twentieth century. The most famous composers in English music history -- Tallis, Byrd, Gibbons -- combine with later masters such as Purcell, Stanford, Howells, Walton, Britten and Vaughan Williams to form a truly masterful collection. On the second disc, there are six Latin motets, set by composers such as Taverner, Howells, Stanford, Vaughan Williams, Philips and Dering. Anthens and Introits include notables Tomkins and Purcell, and lesser-known composers such as Amner, Bairstow and Goss. Hymns span the range from old to modern, including a hymn by John Rutter himself. The disc ends with three prayer settings, including one by the underappreciated John Sheppard, and another from William Harris, whose hymn serves as the title to the companion disc. These anthems and hymns show a powerful range of music, yet show a consistent tone also that makes it rather distinctive of the music of the English church. The group's power and grace is second to none, particularly when singing this kind of music in a place such as Ely Cathedral, arguably the most natural of settings possible.

Songlist: Ave Maria, Loquebantur variis linguis, Miserere mei, Haec dies, Ave verum corpus, If Ye Love Me, Hide not thou thy face, Lord, for thy tender mercy's sake, O clap your hands, Bow thine ear, Hosanna to the Son of David, Lord, how long wilt thou be angry, Tho knowest, lord, Hear my prayer, O Lord, Beati quorum via, This joyful Eastertide, Sing Lullaby, A Spotless Rose, What cheer?, O taste and see, A Hymn to the Virgin, Jesus Christ the apple tree, Faire is the heaven, Rejoice in the Lord, Remember not, Lord, our offences, Come, let's rejoice, When David heard, I say down under his shadow, These are they that follow the Lamb, Christe Jesu, pastor bone, and more

Review: In the first paragraph of the 32-page liner notes to "A Cappella" we learn that "a cappella," translated from the Italian, means "in the style of the chapel," probably a reference to the Sistine Chapel in Rome, where a tradition of unaccompanied singing has gone on since the Renaissance. Although the meaning of the term has since expanded to include unaccompanied secular music, it's clear that the Cambridge Singers hold to the original meaning, as none of the music on this CD would sound out of place under the Sistine's famous ceiling. Directed by the renowned John Rutter, the CS bring us the finest sacred music, first 11 songs from England and Germany, then 14 songs from France, all written in the 19th and 20th centuries. We have Britten's "Hymn to St. Cecilia," four songs from Brahms' "Vier Lieder aus dem Jungbrunnen," five songs from Schuman's "Vier doppelchorige Gesange, Op. 141," R.L. Pearsall's "Lay a Garland," Frederick Delius' "The Splendour Falls on Castle Walls," Ravel's "Trois Chansons," Debussy's "Trois Chansons de Charles d'Orleans," and eight songs from "Chansons Francaises." As most of the lyrics are in German or French, it's nice to have the extensive liner notes with all the words and translations. Beautiful music, angelically sung!

Songlist: Hymn To St. Cecilia, Nun Stehn Die Rosen In Blute, Die Berfe Sind Spitz, Am Wildbachen Die Weiden, Und Gehst Du Uber Den Kirchhof, An Die Sterne, Ungewisses Licht, Zuversicht, Talismane, Lay A Garland, The Splendour Falls On Castle Walls, Nicolette, Trois Beaux Oiseaux Du Paradis, Ronde, Dieu! Qu'il La Fait A Bon Regarder, Quant J'ai Ouy Le Tabourin, Yver, Vous N'estes Qu'un Villain, Magoton Va T'a L'iau, La Belle Se Sied Au Pied De La Tour, Pilons I'orge, Clic, Clac, Dansez Sabots, C'est La Petit' Fill' Du Prince, La Belle Si Nous Etions, Ah! Mon Beau Laboureur, Les Tisserands

Review: The programme of music on this album is chosen from eight Collegium recordings, illustrating something of the range and scope of the choir's work, which is deliberately not restricted to any one period or style. Sacred and secular, historic and contemporary, a cappella and accompanied music have all found a place in the Cambridge Singers' growing discography, and several recordings feature music by John Rutter. Guest artists the King's Singers join forces with narrator Richard Baker and the City of London Sinfonia under the baton of Richard Hickox for an extract from John Rutter's musical fable based on The Wind in the Willows, which has been performed at many King's Singers concerts; and the City of London Sinfonia are heard on their own in the Waltz movement from another Rutter piece, the Suite Antique for flute, harpsichord and strings.

Songlist: Trois Chansons de Charles d'Orleans (Claude Debussy):

Review: The Cambridge Singers, directed by John Rutter, bring us English choral music (all a cappella), folk-songs, airs and ballads, from the composers Elgar, Stanford, Delius, Grainger, Vaughan Williams, Holst and Britten. These lovely songs, with names like Delius' "To be sung of a summer night on the water," Williams' "The cloud-capped towers," and Britten's "The succession of the four sweet months," tells us all we need to know about these songs. Soaring, sweet and delightful!

Songlist:

Review: Ever since my musical life began, church music has played a significant and cherished part in it: first as a boy soprano in my school chapel choir, then as a teenage organist, much later as director of the chapel choir at Clare College, Cambridge, and most recently as conductor of the Cambridge Singers, whose recordings and recitals often include sacred music. Given this background, it is almost inevitable that among my compositions there should be a fair amount of church music, most of which has been written in response to commissions and invitations. All of the pieces heard on this recording were primarily intended for use in the context of a church service or festival, originally accompanied (with the exception of the two hymn arrangements with brass fanfares) just by organ or piano. However, I also scored the accompaniments for orchestra, and hope they may find use in this more colorful form. John Rutter

Songlist: Te Deum, Be thou my vision, I believe in springtime, Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace, O be joyful in the Lord, All creatures of our God and King, A choral fanfare, As the bridegroom to his chosen, Christ the Lord is risen again, Thy perfect love, The Lord is my light and my salvation, Go forth into the world in peace, Now thank we all our God

Review: Directed by the legendary John Rutter,the 41-strong, angel-voiced Cambridge Singers bring us a 40-part motet by Tallis, "Miserere" by Allegri, "Singet dem Herrn" by Bach, "Fest- und Gedenkspruche" by Brahms, and works by Guerrero, Phillips, Caldara, Scheidt and Mendelssohn. All are sung in the soaring polychoral (multiple choirs) style of the Christian church of the 16th and 17th centuries. There is some accompaniment, Helen Gough on baroque cello, William Hunt on violone and Wayne Marshall on chamber organ, but it is spare, the main focus being on the voices and sounds coming from different points in space, what appears to be an early attempt at stereo or quadrophonic sound without speakers. The extensive liner notes give us the words and much information about the polychoral style and about each composer's work. Beautiful!

Songlist: Duo Seraphim, Miserere Mei, Deus, Crucifixus, Surrexit Pastor Bonus, Spem In Alium Nunquam Habui, Ave Regina Caelorum, Unsere Vater Hofften Auf Dich, Wie Ein Starker Gewappneter, Wo Ist Ein So Herrlich Volk, Mitten Wir Im Leben Sind, Heilig, Singet Dem Herrn, Wie Sich Ein Vater Erbarmet, Lobet Den Herrn In Seinen Taten-Alles Was Odem Hat

Review: This recording presents a selection of fifteen of the 150 or so Latin motets and three of the dozens of English anthems that, between them, form the greater part of the life's work of William Byrd (1543-1623), the greatest English composer of his era. The chosen motets and anthems represent just some of the many facets of Byrd's sacred music, now recognized after three centuries of neglect as among the most glorious every written for choir.

Songlist: Sing Joyfully, Turn our captivity, Praise our Lord, all ye Gentiles, Emendemus in Melius, Siderum Rector, Plorans plorabit, Visita, quaesumus Domine, Attollite portas, Laudibus in Sanctis, Gaudeamus omnes, Ave Verum Corpus, Veni, Sancte Spiritus, Christus resurgens, Solve iubente Deo, O Magnum Mysterium, Non vos relinquam, O quam suavis, Justorum animae

Review: The 'fancies' that give this album its title are the fleeting ideas, dreams and whims that flit like Will-o'-the-wisps through the imagination of every artist. I have always thought that they were captured to perfection by the Elizabethan poets and by their collaborators, the madrigal composers such as Weelkes, Wilbye and Morely; and, looking back now on the music heard on this recording, I realize how much of it was inspired by the madrigalian spirit. Fancies was written in 1971 for the Richard Hickox Singers and Orchestra (the orchestra was later renamed the City of London Sinfonia, who play on this recording). The first performance was given in London, repeated shortly afterwards at an open-air concert one lovely summer's evening by the River Thames in rural Berkshire, a perfect setting for it. The Suite Antique, dating from 1979, also has a Berkshire association: I was asked to write it for the Cookham Festival, to be peformed by Duke Dobing and the London Baroque Soloists at a concert in Cookham Parish Church. Bach's Fifth Brandenburg Concerto was on the programme, so I decided to write for the same combination of instruments, and to pay musical homage to the forms and styles of Bach's day. - John Rutter

Songlist: Fancies, Tell me where is fancy bred, There is a garen in her face, The urchins' dance, Riddle song, Midnight's bell, The bellman's song, Suite Antique, Prelude, Ostinato, Aria, Waltz, Chanson, Rondeau, Five Childhood Lyrics, Monday's child, The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, Windy nights, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, Sing A Song Of Sixpence, When Icicles Hang, Icicles, Winter nights, Good ale, Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind, Winter wakeneth all my care, Hay, ay

Cambridge Singers : Flora Gave Me Fairest Flowers   

Review: The sixteenth-century madrigal was an Italian form. The term 'madrigal' was loosely applied to a wide variety of music, but generally denoted a polyphonic setting for four or more voices of an amorous or pastoral text which was closely depicted in the music. Thomas Morely transplanted the form into England in the 1590s; this marked the beginning of the brief but brilliant flowering of the English madrigal. Between the 1590s and the early 1620s, twenty composers published a total of 36 books of madrigals, after which the form virtually disappeared. Some of these composers, such as Morely and Weelkes, followed the Italian model closely; others, such as Byrd and Gibbons, mostly stayed with the simpler English form of the consort song, where the tune remains in one voice, word-painting is not used, and strophic form is preferred to the continuous structure of the madrigal proper. Among the twenty-one items selected for this recording there are examples of several types of piece, ranging from true Italianate madrigals such as Too much I once lamented, via more popular 'balletts' such as Fyer, fyer!, to the simple part-songs like A little pretty bonny lass. The variety, imagination, and inspired blending of poetry and music characteristic of the best of the 'English Madrigal School' afford a particular kind of delight in performance, shared equally by singer and listener.

Songlist: Hark, all ye lovely saints above, Though Amaryllis dance in green, Round about in a fair ring, Adieu, ye city-prisoning towers, Flora gave me fairest flowers, Sweet Suffolk owl, As Vesta was from Latmos hill descending, Lullabye, This sweet and merry month of May, Now Is The Month Of Maying, A little pretty bonny lass, Fyer, fyer!, Too much I once lamented, My bonny lass she smileth, Ha ha! This world doth pass, Quick, quick, away, dispatch!, Dainty fine bird, Come again! Sweet love doth now invite, Mother, I Will have a husband, Draw on, sweet night, Sleep, fleshly birth, Weep, weep, mine eyes, Death hath deprived me, The silver swan, Adieu, sweet Amaryllis

Review: This specially-priced CD includes John Rutter's two most often-performed, larger choral works, previously on two separate recordings. The recording represents two sides of Rutter's choral style - the gentle and introspective Requiem, the bright and joyful Magnificat. Requiem was written in 1985, when Rutter was moved by a personal bereavement.Ê Rutter describes it as "a meditation on themes of life and death using a personal compilation of texts.' Magnificat, written in 1990, premiered in Carnegie Hall. "In countries such as Spain, Mexico and Puerto Rico," writes Rutter, "feast days of the Virgin are joyous opportunities for people to take to the streets and celebrate with singing, dancing and processions. These images of outdoor celebration were, I think, somewhere in my mind as I wrote...." - John Rutter

Songlist: Requiem, - Requiem aeternam, - Pie Jesu, - Sanctus, Agnus Dei, - The Lord is my shepherd, - Lux aeterna, Magnificat, - Magnificat anima mea, - Of a Rose, a lovely Rose, - Quia fecit mihi magna, - Et misericordia, - Fecit potentiam, - Esurientes, - Gloria

Review: This recording is a choral tribute to the sacred music of two visionary composers who, among their other achievements, made distinctive, lasting and much-cherished contributions to the musical repertory of the English Church. There are many links between Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924) and Herbert Howells (1892-1983), the most obvious being that from 1912 to 1916 Howells was one of Stanford's many composition students at the Royal College of Music in London, where Howells was himself later to teach composition for over fifty years. Both men were outstanding teachers, Stanford in particular being virtually father to a whole generation of British composers, including Vaughn Williams, Holst, Bridge, Butterworth, Bliss, Ireland and Gurney. With the exception of the Howells Requiem and the two sacred part-songs, the music heard on this recording was intended for use in the church, in the context of the Anglican liturgy. As such, much of it is familiar and well-loved within Anglican circles but all too little-known elsewhere. It deserves to be more widely appreciated on its own considerable merits.- John Rutter

Songlist: Magnificat in G, Magnificat, Magnificat in B flat, Nunc Dimittis in B flat, O for a closer walk, Like as the Hart, The fear of the Lord, Requiem, Salvator mundi, Psalm 2, Requiem aeternam, Psalm 121, I Heard A Voice From Heaven, When Mary thro' the garden went, Long, long ago, Te Deum in C, All My Hope on God is founded

Review: The Renowned, 31-strong Cambridge Singers have a present for us: 23 songs of Christmas, many of them written, composed and/or arranged by contemporary composer John Rutter, a giant in the Choral world. "Jesus Child," "There Is A Flower," "Donkey Carol," "Wildwood Carol," "Angels' Carol," "Mary's Lullaby" - Rutter's original music is lovely, and the CS are the group to do it justice. Also fine are all the traditional carols like "I Saw Three Ships" and "Joy to the World." The songs are divided into six sections: Prologue, The Christmas Story, Christmas Night, Christmas Reflections, Christmas Joy and Epilog. Most of the songs are accompanied by the London Sinfonia. The liner notes are extensive and beautiful. A monumental achievement for the Cambridge Singers, a generous, spirited and brilliant Christmas CD!

Songlist: Wexford Carol, The Christmas story - Jesus child, There Is a Flower, Donkey Carol, Wild Wood Carol, Angels' Carol, Nativity Carol, Mary's lullaby, Star Carol, Candlelight Carol, Shepherd's Pipe Carol, Christmas lullaby, Dormi, Jesu, Love Came Down at Christmas, Sans Day Carol, I Wonder as I Wander, What Sweeter Music, Joy to the World, I Saw Three Ships, Deck the Hall, The Very Best Time of Year, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Silent Night

Review: "For children growing up in postwar England as I did, traditional songs still form a common musical currency. These songs brought me delight and pleasure then, and they still do now, though pleasure has become tinged with nostalgia because, for the most part, they are forgotten and gone from our lives, perhaps forever. This album is an affectionate tribute to their composers and poets; a few were renowned, most were obscure or unknown, but the songs they created were famous, and I remember them fondly." - John Rutter

Songlist: The Bold Grenadier, The Keel Row, The Willow Tree, The Sprig Of Thyme, Down By The Sally Gardens, The Cuckoo, I Know Where I'm Going, Willow Song, O Can You Sew Cushions, The Miller Of Dee, Im Herbst, The Girl I Left Behind Me, O Waly, Waly, The British Grenadiers, Golden Slumbers, Dashing Away With The Smoothing Iron, The Lark In The Clear Air, She's Like The Swallow, Searching For The Lambs, The Dark Eyed Sailor, The Spring Time Of The Year, Just As The Tide Was Flowing, The Lover' Ghost, Wassail Song, She Moved Through The Fair