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Be All Merry / Earley, Choral Scholars of UCD, Irish Chamber Orchestra
Signum Classics

Be All Merry / Earley, Choral Scholars of UCD, Irish Chamber Orchestra

$19.99

Details

Composer
VARIOUS
Artist
The Choral Scholars Of University College Dublin, Earley
Format
CD
Label
Signum Classics
Released
Aug 21, 2020
Catalog #
SIGCD643
UPC
635212064320

About

The Choral Scholars is an internationally acclaimed chamber choir of gifted student singers led by founding Artistic Director, Dr. Desmond Earley, based at University College Dublin College of Arts & Humanities. Scholars come from various academic disciplines and commit to an intensive programme of choral study. Be all Merry is one of three new pieces especially composed for the Choral Scholars. This lively carol for choir, orchestra and violin by Irish composer Eoghan Desmond evokes the joyful play of Christmas in the lines ‘Be all merry in this house/Exultet celum laudibus!’. The recording contains a remarkable setting of the Advent plainsong hymn Christe Redemptor Omnium for tenor solo, chorus, violin and violoncello by Ivo Antognini, crafted for Choral Scholars with the kind support of the Swiss Embassy in Dublin. The Adoration of the Magi by American composer Timothy Stephens is a breathtaking setting of W. B. Yeats’ poetry. A beautiful Irish-language lullaby – Cró na Nollag – set by father and son, Adhamhnán and Uinseann Mac Domhnaill, and the much-loved Scottish tune simply titled Suantraí, are also included. The Irish Chamber Orchestra are also featured on a number of tracks including The Wexford Carol and Carol of the Bells. The choir closes the album with the song most associated with friendship, hope and the promise of a new year, Auld Lang Syne. The post-production phase of this recording project took place as the world grappled with the outbreak of COVID-19. American composer Linda Kachelmeier’s piece – We Toast the Days – serves as a reminder of the strength, love and hope that resonates throughout the world not simply at Christmastide but also during periods of hardship.

REVIEW:

Like the Winchester Quiristers, the Choral Scholars of University College Dublin are unique – a relatively new group of collegiate singers who trade a chapel for an intriguing commercial instinct. Be All Merry is a slick album of new, largely unrecognisable settings of old carols woven through with the sound of Gaelic folk song, much of it from the fiddle of the Irish Chamber Orchestra’s concertmaster. It provides that one thing we badly need from Christmas albums – something different that’s still consistent and festive – and only occasionally edges into processed cheese despite every track being suitable for a TV chat show’s play-out. If you can take a degree of Gaelic mistiness there is plenty to enjoy. The jagged arrangement of the Carol of the Bells by conductor Desmond Earley caught my ear, sung by a choir very well trained with an idea of its own sound.

-- Gramophone

Tracklist 14 tracks

  1. 1 In Dulci Jubilo (arr. M. Culloton for mixed choir) 03:34
    Track
    1
    Title
    In Dulci Jubilo (arr. M. Culloton for mixed choir)
    Duration
    03:34
    Composer
    Traditional
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  2. 2 Be All Merry 03:20
    Track
    2
    Title
    Be All Merry
    Duration
    03:20
    Composer
    Eoghan Desmond
    Performer
    Katherine Hunka
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  3. 3 God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen (arr. J. Høybye for mixed choir) 01:54
    Track
    3
    Title
    God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen (arr. J. Høybye for mixed choir)
    Duration
    01:54
    Composer
    Traditional
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  4. 4 Curoo Curoo 03:15
    Track
    4
    Title
    Curoo Curoo
    Duration
    03:15
    Composer
    Elaine Agnew
    Ensemble
    female section Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, Irish Chamber Orchestra
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  5. 5 The Adoration of the Magi (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir, strings and piano) 05:53
    Track
    5
    Title
    The Adoration of the Magi (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir, strings and piano)
    Duration
    05:53
    Composer
    Timothy Stephens
    Performer
    Katherine Hunka, Tristan Russcher
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, Irish Chamber Orchestra
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  6. 6 Suantraí (arr. F. Ó Cearbhaill for mixed choir) 02:34
    Track
    6
    Title
    Suantraí (arr. F. Ó Cearbhaill for mixed choir)
    Duration
    02:34
    Composer
    Traditional
    Performer
    Niamh McCullough
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  7. 7 The Wexford Carol (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir and strings) 04:52
    Track
    7
    Title
    The Wexford Carol (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir and strings)
    Duration
    04:52
    Composer
    Traditional
    Performer
    Mark Waters, Aoife Nic Athlaoich
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, Irish Chamber Orchestra
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  8. 8 O Magnum Mysterium 04:33
    Track
    8
    Title
    O Magnum Mysterium
    Duration
    04:33
    Composer
    Andrej Makor
    Performer
    Eleanor Coleman, Max O'Neill
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  9. 9 Christe, Redemptor Omnium 05:24
    Track
    9
    Title
    Christe, Redemptor Omnium
    Duration
    05:24
    Composer
    Ivo Antognini
    Performer
    Declan Wildes, Katherine Hunka, Aoife Nic Athlaoich
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  10. 10 Cró na Nollag 02:37
    Track
    10
    Title
    Cró na Nollag
    Duration
    02:37
    Composer
    Adhamhnán Mac Domhnaill
    Performer
    Kiri O'Neill, Emily Doyle
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  11. 11 Carol of the Bells (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir and orchestra) 02:09
    Track
    11
    Title
    Carol of the Bells (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir and orchestra)
    Duration
    02:09
    Composer
    Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, Irish Chamber Orchestra
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  12. 12 Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (arr. D. Earley for baritone and mixed choir) 02:57
    Track
    12
    Title
    Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (arr. D. Earley for baritone and mixed choir)
    Duration
    02:57
    Composer
    Hugh Martin
    Performer
    Simon Morgan
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  13. 13 We Toast the Days 02:53
    Track
    13
    Title
    We Toast the Days
    Duration
    02:53
    Composer
    Linda Kachelmeier
    Performer
    Ciarán O'Donovan, Ivan O'Neill
    Ensemble
    male section Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley
  14. 14 Auld Lang Syne (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir) 03:52
    Track
    14
    Title
    Auld Lang Syne (arr. D. Earley for mixed choir)
    Duration
    03:52
    Composer
    Traditional
    Performer
    Kiri O'Neill
    Ensemble
    Choral Scholars of University College Dublin
    Conductor
    Desmond Earley