{"title":"Choral","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"a-choral-christmas-jones-trinity-choir-of-247134","title":"A Choral Christmas \/ Jones, Trinity Choir Of Boston","description":"From the first few seconds of this new recording from Brian Jones and his Trinity Choir, you know it's Christmas. The flute and bell sounds, the dancing rhythm from the organ, the prodigiously joyful voices, and the catchy, unmistakably Rutter-esque melody combine to set off the sparks that promise a bright, happy, thoughtfully and lovingly compiled program. I say \"lovingly\" because this is the type of programming that, as usual with Jones, is not made with the \"snooty\" or \"snobbish\" in mind, but comes purely from the heart and from the experience of a director who knows and cares about the real listening tastes of his audience. (You've got to admire anyone who convincingly and with conviction programs \"The Holy City\" alongside works by Britten and Vaughan Williams, as he did on an earlier recording for Gothic Records.) And, as reflected here, those tastes, especially in Christmas music, cover a fairly wide range--from Rutter (three pieces) to Poulenc (O magnum mysterium) to Luboff (his well-loved arrangement of the Austrian carol Still, still, still).\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The opening tune indeed is by John Rutter, a setting of the 15th-century text \"Sing we to this merry company\", and it's quickly followed by the Luboff arrangement, Gerald Near's setting of Ding! dong! merrily on high, and the well-known Pearsall version of In dulci jubilo. The combination of familiarity and audience-favorite continues throughout the rest of the 21 selections, with classics such as Rutter's all-time most-popular What sweeter music, Elizabeth Poston's Jesus Christ the apple tree, and Poulenc's motet O magnum mysterium. But mixed in among these revered gems are many less well-known pieces, including a snazzy, bluesy Noël nouvelet arranged by Stephen Jackson, Michael Head's charming and lovely The little road to Bethlehem, and of course a Charles Wood arrangement, Once as I remember (Wood is a Jones favorite).\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The choir, one of North America's treasures, always is a treat to hear, displaying not only an enormous stylistic command but also uncommon technical range and interpretive sensitivity. I've said this before, but it's still true: The soprano section would be the envy of any choir. However, the entire ensemble manages a consistent cohesiveness and sonic refinement that's rare among amateur choirs in any part of the world. Even in small details, the choir shows extraordinary care and attention--for instance, in the perfectly rendered endings to the simple but so-often-troublesome \"Gloria\" line in Ding! dong! merrily on high. And for sheer strength and unity of sound, listen to the choir's rendition of Holst's On this day earth shall ring. Other highlights include Bob Chilcott's Mid-winter, a setting of the Christina Rossetti text \"In the bleak mid-winter\" that's become an instant favorite all over the world. Jones himself contributes a very effective arrangement of O little town of Bethlehem that joins the two \"competing\" tunes St. Louis and Forest Green. Although I would prefer a warmer, softer-edged sound in the Poulenc to really capture the \"mysterium\" in the work, and slightly better-tuned tenors in some places (What sweeter music, for example), this is a first rate recording that will satisfy all listeners looking for an ideal all-around Christmas choral collection. The sound, made in Boston's Trinity Church, captures the detail of choir, organ, and occasional percussion while faithfully capturing the fullness and resonance of the church's magnificent space.\u003cbr\u003e --David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com","brand":"Sono Luminus","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44627026215146,"sku":"053479324023","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/184399.jpg?v=1786686336"},{"product_id":"bach-three-weimar-cantatas-joshua-rifkin-bach-199707","title":"Bach: Three Weimar Cantatas \/ Rifkin, Bach Ensemble","description":"Bach, J.S.: Cantatas - Bwv 12, 172, 182 (3 Weimar Cantatas)","brand":"Sono Luminus","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44626959892714,"sku":"053479323125","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/369229.jpg?v=1786002743"},{"product_id":"christmas-star-carols-for-the-christmas-season-244597","title":"Christmas Star - Carols For The Christmas Season \/ Rutter, Cambridge Singers","description":"Another classic from the John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers, whose recordings have become a tradition of Christmas around the world.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eREVIEW\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eChristmas Star\u003c\/em\u003e is an entertaining collection of familiar holiday tunes and carols, all professionally performed by the Cambridge Singers. This is good, straight a cappella holiday mus­ic and should satisfy fans of that style[.]\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e ­– All Music Guide (Stephen Thomas Erlewine)","brand":"Collegium Records","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44626842943722,"sku":"040888050322","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/198745_e0360e80-055d-4993-808a-a85e5525b406.jpg?v=1786004451"},{"product_id":"faire-is-the-heaven-music-of-the-65466","title":"Faire Is The Heaven - Music Of The English Church \/ Rutter","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis recording is dedicated to unaccompanied English church music, sung in the beautiful acoustic of the Lady Chapel of Ely Cathedral. 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(Recent research suggests such richly scored Latin Magnificats could be performed in Lutheran churches at some 15 annual festivals, not just the three – Xmas, Easter, Ascension – previously supposed.) The D major was apparently Bach’s preferred version and is the one commonly played today, as on this latest instalment of Masaaki Suzuki’s acclaimed survey of Bach’s sacred vocal music. Suzuki’s Magnificat, like his earlier Bach recordings, is sharply focused and performed with engaging conviction. My benchmark disc, by Philippe Herreweghe, grips with its palpable air of excitement. Suzuki’s reading is cooler, more nuanced and has a clearer acoustic; yet Herreweghe’s soloists retain a slight edge – few could match Barbara Schlick and oboist Marcel Penseele in rapt duet on ‘Quia respexit’. Herreweghe’s coupling is the splendid Cantata, BWV 80; Suzuki offers a trio of fascinating rareties. The Magnificat by Kuhnau, Bach’s predecessor at Leipzig, resembles Bach’s in instrumentation and division of text: it’s a lively, attractive piece, trumpets ringing out boldly in the bright opening chorus. Two shorter Magnificats by Bach’s Dresden-based contemporary Zelenka represent a very different and highly individual approach, the C major’s tripartite structure creating an almost concerto-like framework for soprano soloist. Suzuki’s excellent, scrupulous performances should provoke greater interest in Kuhnau’s and Zelenka’s church music – the latter’s Missa Dei Filii, by Tafelmusik\/Frieder Bernius (DHM), is also highly recommended. 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For instance, as you listen to the opening Sinfonia of Christ lag in Todesbanden you're immediately struck by the emotive delicacy of the string playing and how perfectly it introduces the subject's necessary resolve and sadness. Moments later when the chorus enters and the momentum shifts, the urgency of the ensemble likewise changes to deftly communicate just the right measure of boldness and hope. Throughout the piece Suzuki's uncanny ability to extract every nuance from Bach's sublime score recalls the efforts of Karl Richter, Günther Ramin, Fritz Werner, Karl Ristenpart, and Helmut Winschermann--bygone patricians of this repertoire who were equally considerate of the music's every emotion, from deepest angst to overwhelming joy. Though BWV 4 is one of Bach's most famous and oft-recorded cantatas, Suzuki's rendering of it ranks with the very best.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The two other cantatas offered--Nacht dir, Herr, verlanget mich BWV 150 and Der Herr denket an uns BWV 196--also receive outstanding performances. In BWV 150, soprano Yumiko Kurisu's seamless and spirited rendering of the aria \"Doch bin und bleibe ich vergnügt\" is a marvel, as is the fifth-movement trio \"Zedern müssen von den Winden\", expertly performed by countertenor Akira Tachikawa, tenor Koki Katano, and veteran Dutch bass Peter Kooy. Also noteworthy is Suzuki's brilliant negotiation of the complex rhythms of the chorale \"Meine Augen sehen stets zu dem herren\", imparting a rarely heard uplifting quality to the setting. BWV 196 is highlighted by the final chorale \"Ihr seid die Gesegneten\", where Suzuki's sensibly dignified conclusion impresses more favorably than the overly exuberant let's-get-it-over-with treatment Konrad Junghänel and the Cantus Cölln offer in their fairly recent Harmonia Mundi recording (type Q1384 in Search Reviews).\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e BIS's sound is of audiophile quality, with an expansive yet detailed sound stage that spectacularly complements Suzuki's grand realization. As Volume 1 in a complete traversal of Bach's sacred and secular cantatas, this auspicious entry offers the promise of an extraordinary and very important cycle that shouldn't be missed by anyone who loves these works. This is the kind of Bach rarely heard anymore--performances that make you want to devote time to them, to listen at lifelike levels and follow the text religiously.\u003cbr\u003e -- ClassicsToday.com","brand":"BIS","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625666801898,"sku":"7318590007518","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/2262961.jpg?v=1785987080"},{"product_id":"bach-the-ascension-oratorio-festive-cantatas-funfgeld-153517","title":"Bach: The Ascension Oratorio, Festive Cantatas \/ Funfgeld, Bach Festival Orchestra","description":"\"The opening and closing choruses of the Ascension oratiorio contain some of Bach’s most irresistible, catchy music, and this chorus and orchestra really give it their all, from the brilliant trumpets and insistent syncopated rhythms to the invigorating choral singing...once you get into this Bethlehem Bach Choir production, it’s impossible not to like it.\"\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e -- David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Sono Luminus","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625650188522,"sku":"053479030627","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/419040.jpg?v=1785996162"},{"product_id":"berlioz-lenfance-du-christ-118628","title":"Berlioz: L'enfance Du Christ","description":"Berlioz's L'Enfance Du Christ is probably known primarily due to it's famous \"Shepherd's Chorus\" but it is a piece that once listeners discover it, they realize a true golden gem has been found. It is primarily a choral work which tells the story of what are called the Infancy Narratives in the New Testament. Scenes of the work are taken from both the scriptures and legends and include Herod visiting a soothsayer which predicts the birth of the Messiah, the Annunciation (Mary learning of the birth of Jesus), the birth itself, and the flight into Egypt. This recording by the Orchestre National du Lille under the direction of Jean-Claude Casadesus captures both the beauty and scope of the work.","brand":"Naxos","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625606967530,"sku":"730099465021","price":20.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/289226.jpg?v=1786043569"},{"product_id":"britten-a-ceremony-of-carols-etc-ronald-234420","title":"Britten: A Ceremony Of Carols \u0026 Friday Afternoon \/ Corp, New London Children's Choir","description":"BRITTEN: A Ceremony of Carols \/ Friday Afternoons","brand":"Naxos","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625567908074,"sku":"730099418324","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/127216.jpg?v=1785930610"},{"product_id":"caldara-christmas-cantata-etc-mallon-aradia-baroque-159418","title":"Caldara: Christmas Cantata, Etc \/ Mallon, Aradia Baroque","description":"CALDARA: Christmas Cantata","brand":"Naxos","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625548574954,"sku":"730099477222","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/127367.jpg?v=1786049325"},{"product_id":"charpentier-vespres-a-la-vierge-niquet-concert-68209","title":"Charpentier: Vespres À La Vierge \/ Niquet, Concert Spirituel","description":"\u003cp\u003eIncludes vesper(s) by Marc-Antoine Charpentier.  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The performance recorded here contains, probably, everything Handel composed for this work in its various incarnations, and then some: A brief organ concerto by the composer is added to the second part’s introduction and another pops up before the final chorus; a number from the serenata Acis \u0026amp; Galatea is inserted at one point; and a Saraband for two harpsichords from Handel’s Almira is used as an interlude in Part III. Furthermore, some will recognize the beautiful aria from the original, “Lascia la spina,” which became “Lascia ch’io piango” in Rinaldo, set to another text and very different music.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  All that aside, this windy work, in which four characters (here, two sopranos and two male altos) stand for Beauty, Pleasure, Time and Disillusion and duke it out until each characteristic opts to serve a better, higher cause, is definitely worth hearing. It contains the appealing, straighforwardly Baroque (if there is such a thing) style of Handel’s early Italian cantatas, mixed with his later sophisticated choral writing and dramatic recitatives. The singers have plenty to do. Both sopranos–Beauty and Pleasure, who sound uncomfortably alike and therefore cut somewhat into the drama–are excellent, with particular kudos going to Claron McFaddon’s Beauty for her lovely trills (especially in #29, with continuo), and both male altos are agile, involved, and just a bit weak in their lower registers.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  The chorus, which is very big and appears to have been recorded from a far greater distance than the soloists, is splendid, as is the orchestra under Joachim Carlos Martini’s leadership. The resonant acoustic makes the soloists sound a bit lonely, but otherwise, no complaints. This remains the only recording of the 1737 omnibus version of the work, and Handel lovers should flock to it.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  – ClassicsToday (Robert Levine)","brand":"Naxos","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625355440362,"sku":"636943444023","price":35.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/311109_6578c337-6c11-4a6f-a14f-3ba0dd0ab2ff.jpg?v=1785951232"},{"product_id":"hear-my-prayer-vaughan-williams-stanford-parry-163743","title":"Hear My Prayer - Vaughan Williams, Stanford, Parry \/  His Majesties Clerkes","description":"Moving music of late-Romantic spirituality by three great 20th-century English composers.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Vaughan Williams Mass in G Minor, Stanford Motets Op. 38, and Parry \"Songs of Farewell.\"\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Cedille","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625332568298,"sku":"735131903622","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/1106080.jpg?v=1785982221"},{"product_id":"images-of-christ-john-rutter-cambridge-singers-243823","title":"Images Of Christ \/ John Rutter, Cambridge Singers","description":"\u003cp\u003e'Another red-letter entry in the Collegium\/Cambridge Singers canon' - Choral Review\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Collegium Records","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625306812650,"sku":"040888012429","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/166454.jpg?v=1786623232"},{"product_id":"liszt-sacred-choral-music-fasolis-radio-svizzera-107624","title":"Liszt: Sacred Choral Music \/ Fasolis, Radio Svizzera Lugano","description":"LISZT: Sacred Choral Music","brand":"Naxos","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44625221124330,"sku":"730099478625","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0614\/3423\/3066\/files\/194026.jpg?v=1786673271"},{"product_id":"lully-grand-motets-vol-1-niquet-le-225590","title":"Lully: Grand Motets Vol 1 \/ Niquet, Le Concert Spirituel","description":"The court of Louis XIV was a lively and musically thriving place, and Jean-Baptiste Lully, who actually was Italian (Giovanni Battista Lulli) but became a naturalized French citizen, was right in the middle of it. As director of one of the king's orchestras and as Superintendent of the King's Music, Composer of the King's Chamber, and Master of Music of the Royal Family, Lully's job included providing music for various entertainments, mostly ballets and other orchestral and stage works. Sacred choral music came later in Lully's career, and this recording offers three of his most important masterpieces in this genre. The artful use of homophonic and polyphonic sections, double chorus, soloists, and orchestral color combine to give each of these substantial works the dramatic charge and forward-moving energy of a theatrical piece. 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