Choral elements from Protestant, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and medieval traditions are included in this anthology of anthems and motets, many drawing inspiration from the Psalms. They range from sixteenth-century Germany (Eccard), through the nineteenth-century Anglican tradition of Hanforth, Stainer and Stanford and the twentieth-century Catholicism of Poulenc, to contemporary England (Rose, Tavener, Harvey), Scotland (MacMillan), Australia (Halley) and the USA (Paulus). Previous recordings from the Choir of St John's, Elora have been described as "a real joy" (Gramophone on 8. 557037, Faire is the Heaven), and "world-class... sensational" Psalms for the Soul).

This recording brings together eleven leading composers whose origins in or strong associations with Canada are manifest in their central position in Canadian musical life. In a program through which the power of tradition and faith flows strongly, themes are explored ranging from paradise and heavenly fulfillment to tragic loss; and from timeless hymn and psalm texts to an exploration of the brevity of human existence in the title work, I Saw Eternity. One of the finest chamber choirs in Canada and beyond, the Elora Festival Singers' 'must-have' (Gramophone) program of Eric Whitacre (8.559677) is just one of their many acclaimed recordings.

Track Listing
1. Hey, Pretty Baby
2. Seventh Avenue Express
3. Walking Slow Behind You
4. Mister Roberts' Roost
5. Don't You Want a Man Like Me
6. South
7. You Call Yourself a Jungle King (I Found Out You Ain't a Doggone Thing)
8. Sophisticated Swing
9. House Rent Boogie
10. Basie's Basement
11. Brand New Wagon

Personnel includes: Count Basie (piano); Jimmy Rushing (vocals); Preston Love, Rudy Rutherford, C.Q. Price, Earl Warren (alto saxophone); Paul Gonsalves, Buddy Tate (tenor saxophone); Jack Washington (baritone saxophone); Ed Lewis, Snooky Young, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Clark Terry, Jimmy Nottingham, Gerald Wilson (trumpet); Bill Johnson, Ted Donnelly, George Matthews, Eli Robinson, George Washington (trombone); Freddie Green (guitar); Walter Page (bass); Jo Jones, Butch Ballard (drums).

Recorded between January 3 and December 12, 1947.

But for the fact that it only has 11 tracks, this mid-priced compilation (not to be confused with the identically titled Bluebird collection covering Basie's early-'30s recordings with the Bennie Moten band) could easily get the highest rating. And this could be the place to start for any rock fans wondering what Basie was about, at least some of the time. This disc shows Basie and company (especially singer Jimmy Rushing) working in an R&B mode, doing such songs as Willie Dixon's "You Call Yourself the Jungle King (I Found Out You Ain't a Doggone Thing)," "Hey, Pretty Baby," "Brand New Wagon," and "Walking Slow Behind You." Rushing and the band sound like they're pushing toward Chess Records' turf. And the astonishing thing is that they pull it off -- if these records had sold in any serious number, Basie and Rushing might have had a whole second career in R&B, right up there with Big Joe Turner. There's a minimum of annotation, and not all of the sound is quite perfect -- amazingly, the 1991 remastered "Basie's Basement" featured here has a click or two in evidence, for which there's no excuse. But the sound quality everywhere else is pretty much beyond reproach, and there's also one number here, "Mister Roberts' Roost," a laidback instrumental prominently featuring Basie's piano, that's otherwise unavailable.

This new Arvo Pärt choral music collection includes a significant number of works sung in English. The three-part Triodion is one of the composer's most inward, contemplative pieces, drawing heavily on early Renaissance choral style for its stark, spare harmonies. Tribute to Caesar, I am the True Vine, and The Woman with the Alabaster Box follow in this tradition, though these feature a richer harmonic palette as well as more fluid movement and brighter colors.

The remaining works include the brooding and intense Ode VII (Memento) from Kanon Pokajanen, the brief, celebratory Bogoróditse Djévo (which closes the program), Nunc dimittis, and Dopo la Vittoria. This last is one of the most beautiful compositions on the CD. Here we have the more familiar, "modern" Pärt as we hear passages that sound faintly minimalistic while always draped in luminous colors and arresting timbres. Of course, those two attributes apply to most of Pärt's moving and exquisitely rendered choral music. Exquisite also describes the performances of the Elora Festival Singers, who provide pure-toned and texturally beautiful singing under Noel Edison's direction. Naxos' recording is spacious and well-detailed, with wide dynamics. A truly enjoyable hour of music, essential for Pärt aficionados and choral enthusiasts.

--Victor Carr Jr, ClassicsToday.com

You might accurately describe this program as a compilation of "great hits of Christian church music", including as it does Franck's Panis angelicus, Finzi's God is gone up, Mozart's Laudate Dominum, Fauré's Cantique de Jean Racine, Lotti's Crucifixus, Howells' Magnificat, and the overrated, overwrought, overlong (and usually excruciatingly-sung) Hear my prayer by Mendelssohn. We also get a couple of Purcell anthems, O God, Thou art my God and Remember not, O Lord, Stanford's glorious motet Justorum animae, Duruflé's tiny masterpiece Ubi caritas et amor, and the choral setting of Elgar's "Nimrod" orchestral variation (Lux aeterna).


In previous reviews, I've praised this excellent choir from Elora, Ontario, and its performances here are first-rate as well. The choir especially shines in the Stanford and Duruflé, singing these oft-recorded motets as well or better than anyone on disc, with every detail of phrasing, breathing, and dynamic change perfectly worked out and executed. The same goes for the Howells, a work we don't hear often enough. We also can appreciate the ensemble's extraordinary discipline in the Purcell pieces, successfully managing the difficult transitions and sustaining the momentum through vocal writing that usually just seems disjointed and cumbersome.


Top billing on the program goes to the ever-popular Mendelssohn, and it's here that the performance falters--not because of the choir or its top-notch organist, Matthew Larkin, but due to soprano soloist Karina Gauvin, who I've admired on several other recordings but who seems shaky, unsure, and less than convincing in this admittedly tedious and difficult solo part. That aside, this is a very satisfying program that choral enthusiasts will embrace, especially when they hear such highlights as Eleanor Daley's refreshingly traditional In Remembrance (from her Requiem), the aforementioned Stanford and Duruflé, and the spectacular rendition of the Elgar, the best version on disc by far. The sound, from the choir's home venue, is full-bodied yet well-balanced, detailed and cleanly articulated. (I'm still hoping that Naxos will include track listings/timings in the CD booklet, not just on the back of the CD box.) [4/7/2006]
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

Includes passacaglia(s) by George Frideric Handel. Soloists: Carlos Prieto, Edison Quintana, Juan Hermida, Juan Luis Prieto Reina.
Includes work(s) by various composers. Soloists: Carlos Prieto, Edison Quintana, Juan Hermida, Juan Luis Prieto Reina.

This is a first rate collection of some of Vaughan Williams' best choral works, both a cappella and with organ accompaniment. Fans of this composer definitely will want to have this disc, whose main attraction is the rarely recorded Mass in G minor. Why this stark and very moving work has received such scant attention on disc is a mystery, but it remains a unique and timeless masterpiece whose bold, bare harmonies and unadorned, chant-like melodies invoke the atmosphere of ancient worship while serving as a kind of musical embodiment of the imposing cathedral structures and spaces in which that worship took place. A good performance of this piece for a cappella double choir and a quartet of soloists first demands excellent singers and an ensemble that's well-balanced and especially solid on the bass end. The nature of the writing, including modal melodies and harmony, parallel fifths, and wide-spaced voicings, gives even the best choirs "intonational" fits; pacing is extremely important in order to keep key, dense-textured sections from bogging down.


None of these challenges proves troublesome at all for the Elora Festival Singers, which during the past 20 years has become one of Canada's--and the world's--finest choirs. Director Noel Edison obviously cares about balances and clarity of line, and also shows concern for his singers (and listeners) by maintaining sensible, effective tempos. However, in one significant place, the crucial, final Agnus Dei movement, I found Edison's tempo just too fast to allow the layers of vocal lines to build sufficient tension and create the energy to achieve the intended, truly powerful climax. Nevertheless, you never get the sense that Edison gets any less than he asks for, especially since the other works on the program are performed with equal intensity and technical confidence. (In the mass, he's also got a terrific quartet of soloists, who not only deliver the notes and maintain the mood in their individual passages, but also make a well-matched ensemble.) It's a real treat to hear the motets sung so well (just listen to that lovely opening to Lord, Thou hast been our refuge, and to the shimmering, jazzy dissonances in the Prayer to the Father of Heaven), and the setting of the beautiful hymn Come down, O Love divine (Down Ampney) makes an appropriate close, a tribute to this composer's immeasurable contribution to the English hymn repertoire. Placing O vos omnes immediately before the mass allows us to easily hear the similarities between these two compositions, written around the same time.


Now, for the slightly bad news: the recording levels make trouble for full enjoyment of these inherently full-bodied, rich-textured works. True, the acoustics of Toronto's illustrious Church of St. Mary Magdalene are somewhat tricky to tame, but if you adjust the volume high enough to comfortably hear softer passages--the beginning of the motet Lord, Thou hast been our refuge, for instance--the louder sections (the entrance of the organ and the work's conclusion), are just too loud. This is true for the mass as well; it seems that the engineers decided that a more distant listening perspective was preferable to a closer one that would have posed its own balance problems. Nevertheless, I eventually was able to find a satisfying middle ground that my ears quickly adjusted to, allowing me to put aside my sonic concerns enough to devote several more hours to this one disc. And I will certainly return to it again, because the performances are that good.
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com