In the Poet's Garden: Choral settings by John Rutter of Shakespeare, Wordsworth, James Weldon Johnson, Charles Causley and others. John is joined by The Cambridge Singers, Melanie Marshall, Roderick Williams, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Taplow Young Voices, Catrin Finch and Matthew Jorysz (solo piano) in this recording of choral works by John Rutter. I'll make me a world; London Town; Dancing Tree; Three Shakespeare Songs; When music sounds. John Rutter writes: Any composer interested in vocal and choral music is both inspired and nourished by poetry. Second only to music, words are my great love, and from my earliest years I have enjoyed seeking out poetry that seems to invite musical setting. This album brings together some of my recent choral music where the words provided the first inspiration and the music followed.
Classical Tranquillity / Rutter, Manchester Camerata
Collegium Records
CD
$8.99$10.99Save 20%Nov 03, 2023
John Rutter writes: Tranquillity is a state of mind. You might be more likely to describe a favorite countryside scene rather than a person as ‘tranquil’, but you are really describing the effect it has on you. You feel calm, serene, still, at peace, relaxed, untroubled, chilled-out . . . perhaps we have so many different words for this state of mind because it is so important, and yet so elusive in an often noisy, frantic world.
Music has an extraordinary power to evoke tranquillity – as is revealed in the eleven pieces I have chosen to make up this collection. Ten of them happen to be among my personal favorites, drawn from the music of seven composers, plus the treasure trove of anonymous folk music, and I have added an orchestral version of my choral setting of Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace, a text formerly believed to be by St Francis of Assisi.
Christmas Night - Carols of the Nativity / Rutter, City of London Sinfonia
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Nov 06, 2020
The theme of this album is the birth of Christ, reflected in the words and music of twenty-two carols spanning more than six centuries. Some of these carols have long been widely known and loved; others have become so thanks to the annual Christmas Eve Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s College, Cambridge; a few are newly written. But all of them focus on the central event of the Christmas story – the birth at Bethlehem – and on the characters in that story: the angels, the shepherds, the wise men, and the mother with her child.
John Rutter writes: “This has always been my favorite among the Christmas albums I have devised and conducted, but digital sound restoration techniques have made huge advances in the years since it was recorded and it was time to give it a spring-clean. In remastering it, it has been possible to bring the sound of the choir and the orchestra to life, and I have been able to enjoy it anew. The Cambridge Singers in 1985 were at the top of their game, and the choir list includes at least two singers who are now internationally renowned as soloists. We hope you will enjoy this classic recording in its newly restored form.”
A Banquet of Voices - Music for Multiple Choirs / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Sep 11, 2020
John Rutter writes: “Revisiting this 1993 Cambridge Singers recording, I realize I should never have withdrawn it from the Collegium catalogue – and all because of an obscure musicological question in my mind over a Gregorian chant, long since resolved. We assembled a stellar team of forty voices, offering a sumptuous programme of music for multiple choirs, with the dazzling Tallis 40-part motet as the centerpiece. Allegri’s Miserere, now a firmer audience favorite than ever, and the most magnificent of Bach’s six motets, Singet dem Herrn, are among the other choral masterpieces featured on an album that truly is a banquet of voices. For the first time, modern digital sound restoration has allowed the music to be heard in its full sonic splendor, and we are confident the album will once again take its place in the treasured family of Cambridge Singers recordings.”
Stanford & Howells Remembered / Rutter, The Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Jul 17, 2020
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: Charles Villiers Stanford and Herbert Howells. It is a newly remastered set of the Cambridge Singers’ 1992 Stanford and Howells recording, which has been expanded with almost twenty minutes of previously unreleased material including Stanford’s resplendent Latin Magnificat. John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers are joined by star organist Wayne Marshall in the magnificent acoustic of Ely Cathedral.
Rutter: Magnificat / Forbes, Cambridge Singers, City of London Sinfonia
Collegium Records
CD
$10.99May 19, 2017
John Rutter’s Magnificat for soprano soloist, choir, and orchestra was written in 1990. The text, based on the prayer ascribed by St. Luke to the Virgin Mary on learning that she was to give birth to Christ, is extended by the interpolation of Marian prayers and poems chosen by the composer. This album is a re-issue of the original recording featuring The Cambridge Singers, the City of London Sinfonia, soprano Patricia Forbes, and John Rutter conducting. While the canticle Magnificat has often been set to music as it is a regular part of Catholic vespers and Anglican evensong, this particular work is one of a few extended settings- this work has seven movements. Rutter drew influence from J. S. Bach’s Magnificat, which also structures the text in movements of different character. Rutter’s Magnificat was composed on commission by MidAmerica Productions, a concert organization in New York performing in Carnegie Hall with a choir of 200 selected voices from all over the United States. The piece has a distinct Latin flair, as Rutter was also inspired by “jubilant celebrations of Mary in Hispanic cultures.”
John Rutter's latest major work Visions is a four-movement showpiece for solo violin, string orchestra, harp and choir of treble voices, based on the theme of Jerusalem, the Holy City of prophetic imaginations. It was composed at the invitation of the 2016 Menuhin Competition and premiered at a Festival concert in London's historic Temple Church by Kerson Leong, winner of the 2010 Junior Menuhin Prize, and the Choristers of the Temple Church. They are joined by the Cambridge Singers and the young and vibran tAurora Orchestra. Requiem, one of Rutter's most well-known and widely-performed pieces, was originally recorded by John Rutter in the 1980's. Rutter felt it would be interesting to give a new generation of the Cambridge Singers an opportunity to see what they could do with what is now a familiar choral work.
All the usual virtues of Rutter's music and recordings are here. He is an extremely adept selector of texts, with The Gift of Life moving from the Book of Common Prayer to New England hymnody to Rutter's own poetry, and making it seem effortlessly of a piece. His handling of his handpicked Cambridge Singers is exemplary. The music is warm and well-shaped, with great sensitivity toward text intelligibility and an even greater level of general accessibility than usual. The album is rounded out by a group of shorter pieces, all recent, and the limpid trio of Christmas works at the end goes nicely with everything else and makes the entire album a good seasonal choice.
This Collegium double-disc set has been prepared to mark 30 years of the Cambridge Singers and to celebrate the 70th birthday of John Rutter.
The first disc highlights 30 years of the Cambridge Singers, through 30 selected tracks from classic Cambridge Singers recordings and features a variety of composers.
The second CD celebrates John Rutter as he approaches his 70th Birthday, with an host of music composed or arranged by the composer over the past 30 years, recorded on the Collegium label.
O Praise The Lord of Heaven - Music of Rejoicing & Reflection by John Rutter
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Sep 24, 2013
The music on this album, was written by John Rutter for a variety of choirs and occasions, over a period of many years. From ceremonial and uplifting, to quiet and reflective, this album features 14 classic tracks from Collegium recordings, plus two previously unreleased tracks.
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REVIEW:
The Cambridge Singers and City of London Sinfonia have the lion's share of this disc. They present amazing performances: very clear diction, tuning and a great sense of blend within the choir, as well as very expressive playing from the orchestra. One thing that this compilation album highlights is the choir's consistency over nearly twenty years.
A very good and well-conceived musical celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee.
No doubt there will be plenty of recordings issued in 2012 to celebrate - or cash in on, the cynic might say - the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. This is John Rutter’s contribution.
You may ask, what have Schubert’s psalm setting or a movement from the Brahms Requiem to do with the British royal family? It may be similarly objected that a piece such as the one by John Tavener has little to do with jubilee celebrations. After all, its sole connection with royalty is that it was sung at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997. The answer to such questions lies in the title of the disc. “Music on Royal Occasions” allows John Rutter to cast his net wide. In fact, all but two of the pieces included here have been performed either at a royal wedding or funeral between 1947 - the marriage of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh - and 2011 - the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The two exceptions are the piece by Richard Rodney Bennett, which was written for the diamond wedding anniversary of the Queen and Prince Philip, and the extract from Britten’s opera, written to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s coronation. In case you were wondering, the Schubert was sung at the 1960 wedding of Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong-Jones while the Brahms was heard at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 2002: I didn’t know those last two facts but the booklet helpfully tells us which piece was heard at which royal event.
Both of the new pieces written for the 2011 Royal Wedding are included. Rutter’s own offering is a nice, readily accessible piece. To be frank - and I speak as an admirer of Rutter’s music - it’s a trifle disappointing in that it’s pretty predictably Rutter-ish. Then, to be fair, an occasion such as the Royal Wedding is one when a composer probably ought to write something that is readily appreciated by a worldwide audience. As I wrote recently, when reviewing a disc of music by Paul Mealor, I’ve revised my view of his Ubi caritas since I first heard it. At the Royal Wedding I thought it a somewhat grey piece but hearing it again on the Mealor disc I thought it came over better. However, I clearly recall thinking when I first heard it that it wasn’t a patch on the Maurice Duruflé setting and hearing the two one after the other merely confirms that view. The Mealor piece is nice and sincere but Duruflé’s fluent setting is simply inspired.
New to me was the Richard Rodney Bennett piece and I’m delighted to make its acquaintance. Written for unaccompanied choir it’s a very fine setting of the famous passage from St. Paul’s Epistle to the Corinthians - ‘If I speak with the tongues of men and angels …’ It receives a v ery fine performance, as do all the other pieces on the programme. It’s enterprising to include this unfamiliar piece and it’s equally enterprising to include the extract from Britten’s Gloriana.
Soprano Elin Manahan Thomas is on hand to sing the solos in the Mozart and Handel selections. She sings both very well, though, to my taste, her ornamentation in the Handel is a bit too florid. Incidentally, the Handel is also distinguished by excellent silvery trumpet solos by Simon Cox.
The Brahms piece is given in English. I’d much rather hear it in German but I can understand why it’s done in English here since that’s how it’s done as a separate Anglican anthem - and, presumably, that’s how it was given at the Queen Mother’s funeral. The Elgar piece that follows is the prologue to the oratorio The Apostles and it, too, is often heard as a separate anthem. I was mildly disappointed to hear it done here with organ accompaniment - though Andrew Lucas plays splendidly. It’s a bit illogical to do the Brahms with orchestra and the Elgar without; I can only think that the Aurora Orchestra isn’t sufficiently big for Elgar’s scoring.
So, to anyone who might glance at this CD on a shelf and dismiss it as ‘just another Jubilee potboiler’ I’d say: think again. I must honest and say that’s what I expected when I saw the disc advertised but I was wrong. This selection is a bit different and a bit more thoughtful and reflective than one might expect. Perhaps one should coin a phrase and say ‘don’t judge a CD by its cover’. The performances are all expertly done and the recorded sound and documentation are very good. This is a very good and well-conceived musical celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee.
Treasure Of English Church Music / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$32.99Aug 30, 2011
For repertory and performance details, please see the individual discs comprising this set: Collegium 107 "Faire is the Heaven" and Collegium 113 "Hail, Gladdening Light". Includes work(s) by various composers. Ensemble: Cambridge Singers. Conductor: John Rutter.
Rutter: A Song in Season / Cambridge Singers, Royal Philharmonic
Collegium Records
CD
$18.99Sep 01, 2010
The Wells Jubilate is typical Rutter – brightly melodic, immediately communicative, and well calculated to bring executive satisfaction to the performers without over-stretching them technically.
Brass fanfares cap the organ accompaniment resplendently: it’s an effective opener, though perhaps the concluding Winchester Te Deum is even more stirringly celebratory. ‘Look to the Day’ (written for Cancer Research UK) is similarly tuneful and optimistic...
I personally prefer Rutter in less glib and comfortable mode: ‘Lord, thou hast been our refuge’, for instance, combines a resonant part for solo trumpet with a sustained seriousness in addressing the biblical text, plumbing deeper emotions than he finds in the more cosy, extrovert settings. ‘O Lord, thou hast searched me out’ (commemorating George Guest) is similarly reflective, cor anglais this time providing the obbligato commentary.
With Rutter himself conducting his own, outstanding Cambridge singers, these excellently recorded performances have a grip and authority hard to equal.
Faure: Requiem & Other Choral Music / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Jan 01, 2010
...Rutter distils even more drama from dynamic contrasts than Dutoit, the balance between voices and instruments in his performance sounds natural, not carefully achieved, his boyish-sounding sopranos (above all the touchingly ethereal Caroline Ashton in the Pie Jesu) seem as incontrovertibly right for the colour of this work as the solitary, silvery violin that the Rutter edition employs in the Sanctus... [F]or truth to Faure's luminous conception Rutter's version is still unapproached, and it still heads my list.
The Sacred Flame / Rutter, Cambridge Singers, La Nuova Musica
Collegium Records
CD
$18.99Mar 01, 2009
A new recording by John Rutter and his Cambridge Singers is always welcome, and this one features 20 works drawn from the sacred choral repertoire of the Renaissance and Baroque. Most of these are motets and many are familiar (Palestrina's Sicut cervus and Exsultate Deo, Gabrieli's Jubilate Deo, Lassus' Timor et tremor, Josquin's Ave Maria) and all are included in Rutter's published anthology, European Sacred Music (Oxford). As Rutter states, the program's theme is to focus on the "wealth of sacred music...created in continental Europe out of the ferment of the age of Reformation", and while Rutter has chosen primarily works resulting from the "extraordinary flowering" of musical activity in the Catholic church during this period, we also are treated to a motet by Bach (O Jesu Christ, meins Lebens Licht BWV 118/231, often mis-classified as a cantata), a Magnificat (presumably) by Buxtehude, and a psalm (100) by Schütz.
Some listeners of course will disagree, but for me, the program's two longest pieces--Monteverdi's Beatus vir and the Buxtehude Magnificat--are the least interesting, the former's main thematic material formed primarily by repetitive scales and rudimentary harmony set to monotonous rhythm, the latter functional and pleasant enough but rather flat, undynamic, and static, a work that reminds us that just because a notable composer wrote (or may have written!) something and the score survived doesn't necessarily mean it's good or worthy of more than musicological interest.
No matter how you judge these two works, you'll be happy with the performances, which throughout this recording are at the high level we always expect from this choir and director: vibrant, articulate, carefully balanced, and always attentive to a given work's inherent expressive possibilities. And speaking of articulate, it's wonderful to hear the opening Jubilate Deo (a piece lovingly attempted and so often mangled by well-meaning choirs all over the world) sung with such clarity and agility, unrushed; likewise, Palestrina's sublime Sicut cervus is well-paced, each line given its due. Other highlights include the Ave Maria of Josquin (impressive intonation and sectional tone quality), Lassus' Ave verum corpus (those exquisitely sustained long lines!), and a curious--and quite beautiful--setting of Crux fidelis attributed to John IV, King of Portugal. The instrumental ensemble, the relatively "new" La Nuova Musica, is first-rate, its timbres adding textural variety and layers of color to nine of the selections. And completing the package is top-notch production and engineering by Simon Eadon, captured in the excellent acoustics of London's Great Hall of University College School. Needless to say: Highly recommended!
A Christmas Festival / Rutter, RPO, Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$18.99Oct 27, 2008
John Rutter directs the Cambridge Singers, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the award-winning Farnham Youth Choir alongside guest soloists Melanie Marshall, Clara Sanabras and Elin Manahan Thomas, for an unforgettable festival of Christmas music.
REVIEW:
Fans of John Rutter--and particularly of his Christmas music and programs--will certainly rejoice and be merry with the release of this, "the first all-new Christmas recording from John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers for 20 years". Listeners familiar with the Cambridge Singers' half-dozen or so earlier Christmas albums will be especially pleased to find the premieres of five new Rutter works and 10 new arrangements. Opening and (almost) closing the disc are two old favorites: David Willcocks' arrangements of O come all ye faithful and Hark! the herald angels sing--but with newly written fanfares by Rutter, whose annual London Christmas Festival concerts provided the idea and much of the material for this program.
As for Rutter's original pieces--Ave Maria; Rejoice and be merry; Magical Kingdom; New Year; I wish you Christmas--there are no surprises here, just more of the same instinctively tuneful lines, ingratiating, pop-flavored harmonies, and thoughtful treatment of texts that for decades have endeared his music to millions of singers and audiences. Seasoned Rutter listeners will especially savor the composer's trademark rhythmic style and harmonic changes in I wish you Christmas (which he wrote for the 2006 Festival) and New Year (a 2006 commission for Sandringham Church to celebrate the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth), for which he also wrote the texts.
Other notable entries are Bob Chilcott's The Shepherd's Carol, written in 2000 for the famed King's College service of Nine Lessons and Carols, and Nigel Hess' Christmas Overture, a tightly woven orchestral medley of traditional Christmas tunes written for the 2007 Festival that skillfully exploits both the full orchestra and the festive characteristics of the carols themselves.
There are several selections for solo voice as well, the most enjoyable of which are performed by Clara Sanabras (Rutter's setting of the Catalan carol El Noi de la Mare) and Melanie Marshall (two other Rutter arrangements, of Jester Hairston's Mary's Boy Child and the Caribbean carol The Virgin Mary had a baby boy).
In addition to the expectedly excellent performances by the Cambridge Singers, we also enjoy contributions by the fine Farnham Youth Choir on several tracks--and the Royal Philharmonic treats Rutter's orchestrations with appropriate style and enthusiasm. There's a big, festive feel to the sound and overall ambience of this production (recorded in London's Cadogan Hall), which absolutely suits the occasion--and Melanie Marshall's closing rendition of Have yourself a merry little Christmas (another Rutter arrangement) brings it all home with a nice personal blessing. A great job, and a welcome early Christmas present!
Lighten Our Darkness / Rutter, The Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$18.99Jan 01, 2006
The service of 'Compline' is the last of the seven daily services observed in monastic communities, taking place immediately before bedtime. It has over many centuries inspired incredibly beautiful compositions, and this release gathers together eighteen of the many lovely 'a cappella' choral motets, mainly from the Renaissance period, which were written to adorn the evening worship of the church. In addition, the 'Office of Compline', sung in English with its traditional chants, has been included in its entirety on a bonus CD. 'Lighten our Darkenss' sees John Rutter and his Cambridge Singers return to the austere surrounds and sumptuous acoustic of the Lady Chapel at Ely Cathedral, where many of their classic recordings from the 1980s and 1990s were recorded. It was, in all probability, the place where the monks of Ely sang Compline before the Reformation; its magnificent acoustics and architectural splendour and grace continue to make it the perfect setting for Compline today.
Fancies - Music By John Rutter / Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Jan 01, 2005
A mid-price reissue of the popular 'Fancies' album, collecting together John Rutter's best-known concert works. As well as the virtuosic 'Suite Antique' (for flute, harpsichord and strings), this disc contains the three choral song-cycles 'Five Childhood Lyrics' (for unaccompanied choir), 'When Icicles Hang' and 'Fancies' (both for choir and orchestra).
This mid-price collection of traditional songs (formerly 'The Lark in the Clear Air) includes John Rutter's widely-performed cycles 'A Sprig of Thyme' and 'Five Traditional Songs', alongside Vaughan Williams' 'Five English Folk Songs' and arrangements by other composers. Now with Rutter's arrangement of 'Searching for Lambs', never before released on CD.
Rutter: Mass Of The Children / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$18.99Sep 01, 2003
John Rutter has an unmistakable style whose identifying characteristics include some favorite rhythmic and melodic elements, devices that tell us immediately that this is the composer of both For the beauty of the earth (one of Rutter's more popular, enduring anthems) and Look at the world, written in 1996 for The Council for the Protection of rural England, and one of eight pieces included on this disc (besides the title work), all of which were composed for various occasions during the past 10 years. Many of the familiar and well-loved staples of Rutter's music are here--the flowing melodies, catchy rhythms, and pop-tinged harmonies; but there also is much evidence of a composer both as inspired as in his classic What sweeter music and more complex than usual in both thematic ideas and expressive technique.
The opening of the outstanding Mass of the Children (a work completed in early 2003 and first performed at a Carnegie Hall concert) is full of promise, its exciting, engaging, Britten-esque tune for children's chorus capturing our attention and setting the stage for a fresh, new experience. I only wish that Rutter had continued with this idea and developed it--or at least played off its dancing, jaunty style. But instead the children's song melds (albeit very nicely and easily) into a Kyrie that's more comfortably in the traditional Rutter character--a perfectly effective transition and comprised of very fine, well-fashioned music, but leaving us to imagine what greater adventures might have been.
There are many more marvelous passages for the children's voices, including the lovely Benedictus, a lilting, Siciliana-like section whose initial gentleness expands into a full-bodied expression, joined by the adult choir and soloists. One of the more affecting passages--and most impressive in terms of text setting, mood, and orchestration--is the Agnus Dei, whose opening minutes capture the profound seriousness and eternal consequences of our plea for mercy. Just as suddenly, the children take over with a tender, beguiling setting of William Blake's The Lamb, returning our thoughts to the innocent one who "became a little child", the one to whom we pray. Then, not unsurprisingly for this optimistic composer, we're left with a Dona nobis pacem benediction that's as strongly reassuring as we can imagine. In addition to the standard Latin Missa brevis texts, Rutter also characteristically organizes his material by inserting texts from other sources, "giving the whole work the framework of a complete day, from waking to sleeping", beginning and ending with settings of a morning and evening hymn by Bishop Thomas Ken.
The remaining works are highlighted by A Clare Benediction (which Rutter wrote for his alma mater), the a cappella Musica Dei donum (widely known for its inclusion in the tribute to Linda McCartney, A Garland for Linda), and an unusual and quite demanding setting of Come down, O Love divine for unaccompanied double choir. The Cambridge Singers (whose roster shows a major turnover of singers from its last incarnation) is as vocally well-matched, technically polished, and musically involving as always. The Cantate Youth Choir is a delight, and the two soloists are ideal. The sound grants both spaciousness and warmth to the singers and orchestra, so that in all it's hard to imagine a session with this recording that would be anything less than satisfying, especially for Rutter fans, who will have to have this--and who will be thrilled to have a new release from this revered composer and his choir, whose recordings during the past few years have been all too few and far between. [9/8/2003] --David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com
Be Thou My Vision - John Rutter / Cambridge Singers, Et Al
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Jan 01, 2003
This collection draws together many of the much-loved and most-requested shorter choral works by John Rutter. Gathered from across the Collegium catalogue, 'Be Thou My Vision' includes all of the church anthems and other sacred pieces for which Rutter is justly famous, representing for the first time a handy compendium of the best-loved Rutter works in their definitive performances by the Cambridge Singers, directed by the composer. 'The recordings of Rutter conducting his own music with the Cambridge Singers remain gleaming beacons of irrepressible music-making.' - BBC Music Magazine
Over the past couple of decades, the Christmas recordings of John Rutter and his Cambridge Singers have claimed such a solid and widely enjoyed presence among choral music fans that we have to say that this group and its director/composer/arranger have long ago passed from phenomenon to tradition. This new release, which contains 19 previously issued but newly re-mixed tracks along with four never-before released selections, is both a celebration of that legacy and a re-affirmation of Rutter's uniquely influential contributions to a special genre that began years ago with his acclaimed carol arrangements and his now-classic anthem "What sweeter music". While this disc does not feature Rutter's own compositions--those can be found on an earlier companion disc, The John Rutter Christmas Album (type Q5895 in Search Reviews)--it does offer many of his carol arrangements (notably the infectious "Somerset Wassail") along with some of the finest by such masters as David Willcocks, H. Walford Davies, and Healey Willan (whose rarely-heard setting of "What is this lovely fragrance?" is happily included rather than the fine but ubiquitous Willcocks version).
The program also provides a very healthy dose of original pieces, from Victoria's O magnum mysterium, Handel's For unto us a child is born, Kenneth Leighton's Lully, lulla, thou little tiny child, and Britten's A New Year Carol, to Sweelinck's double-choir Hodie Christus natus est, John Tavener's The Lamb, and Peter Warlock's Balulalow and I saw a fair maiden. The disc ends with Vaughan Williams' rousing Fantasia on Christmas Carols. As you might expect, there's not a dull moment during this very generously filled 77-plus-minute CD, and there's so much joy and beauty in these well-chosen, perfectly sung pieces that a simple numerical rating doesn't do it justice. The sound is appropriately full, vibrant, clear, and dynamic. Add this to your list. [11/8/2003]
The John Rutter Christmas Album / Rutter, The Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Nov 04, 2002
Over the years John Rutter's Christmas recordings with his outstanding Cambridge Singers have become essential components of holiday tradition for choral music fans around the world. Throughout the 1980s and early '90s Rutter's legions of followers were treated to several now-classic CD albums for Collegium, including Christmas Night, Christmas with the Cambridge Singers, and Christmas Day in the Morning. It's from these recordings that the present program was drawn, with the addition of two newly issued tracks--Dormi, Jesu and Love came down at Christmas. Yes, if you already own those other discs, for completeness' sake and, well, just because it's a new Rutter release, you'll still have to have this one. And that's not a bad thing at all, especially since all of these tracks have been remastered in notably clearer, more vibrant sound than their 10- or 15-year-old predecessors.
The selections focus on Rutter's own compositions, with "a sprinkling" of his arrangements of traditional carols organized (in typical Rutter/Cambridge Singers fashion) into a thematically grouped program--Prologue, The Christmas Story, Christmas Night, Christmas reflections, Christmas Joy, and Epilogue--the latter consisting of a lovely setting of Silent Night, made for a 1988 BBC television production. And speaking of classics, among the 23 pieces heard here is Rutter's masterpiece, What sweeter music, a staple of Christmas programs everywhere (and a continuing presence in a popular series of Volvo commercials), sounding even more glorious than ever. [11/23/2002]
There Is Sweet Music / Rutter, The Cambridge Singers
Collegium Records
CD
$12.99Jan 01, 2002
If you're a choral music fan and you somehow managed to miss this classic the first time around, well now's your chance to grab it--and you must--in its newly reissued version, now at mid-price. The program's opening track--Stanford's exquisite impressionistic masterpiece, The Blue Bird--alone is worth any price, and from there the program never falters, in musical quality or choral artistry. If there are other highlights, they might be the Vaughan Williams Shakespeare Songs, Elgar's My love dwelt in a Northern land, or the difficult and powerfully expressive Five Flower Songs of Benjamin Britten. And then there's the wonderful little encore piece, Stanford's setting of the Irish air Quick! we have but a second, which actually is 41 seconds of virtuoso vocal ensemble magic. John Rutter and his Cambridge Singers made many memorable, and in many cases inimitable recordings--and this is one that belongs in every collection, a bright and beautiful celebration of some of the world's finest choral music, sung the way it should be sung. [12/14/2002] --David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com
