Naxos

Psalms For The Soul - Howells, Stanford, Parry, Sumsion, Etc

$19.99

Details

Composer
VARIOUS
Artist
CHOIR OF ST. JOHNS
Format
CD
Label
Naxos
Released
Sep 01, 2000
Catalog #
8554823
UPC
636943482322

About


Choral enthusiasts, arise! Here is a new recording that you can really get excited about. A dozen or so miles north of the twin cities of Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, lies the village of Elora. And there, at St. John's Anglican Church, is a choir that stands among the best in North America. Its director, Noel Edison, also is the founder of the acclaimed Elora Festival and its Elora Festival Singers, another world-class professional ensemble. The singing on this disc, which includes Psalm settings for the Anglican service, a couple of anthems with Psalm texts, and service music for Good Friday known as The Reproaches, gives further confirmation of Canada's second-to-none stature in the world of choral singing. During the six years that I lived in Kitchener (in the pre-Elora Festival days) I discovered and participated in a choral music tradition that's not widely known or appreciated outside of Canada. Mostly centered in the Anglican churches, it breeds generations of singers who not only are rooted in English church music but also, because of the country's relatively small population and brief musical history, are open to all the world's music, and especially to contemporary works. Luckily for us, Naxos has found this outstanding St. John's choir and I hope we can look forward to many more recordings.


Of course, this program is of a fairly specialized nature. Anglican chant--a stylized singing of liturgical texts, in this case the psalms, to an original, fully harmonized tune--is not for everyone. But over the centuries many of the world's finest composers have lent this form their interest and inspiration--and many lesser-known but highly competent organists and choir directors have contributed their own often strikingly imaginative efforts. If sung properly, as they are here, and if the musical settings are well chosen--also the case on this recording--then listeners are in for a treat. There are too many highlights to single them all out, from Charles Hylton Stewart's Psalms 23 and 103, to David Willcocks' Psalm 131, Hubert Parry's Psalm 84, Ivor Atkins' Psalm 149, Edison's own Psalm 121, and the resounding closer, Stanford's Psalm 150. More famously represented are Edward Bairstow's luscious Lamentations, and the anthems by Herbert Sumsion (They that go down to the sea in ships) and Herbert Howells (Like as the hart, in a lovely, highly romantic rendition with triplets stretched to the limit and beyond). Lennox Berkeley's wonderful The Lord is my Shepherd, so simple and perfect in its expression of the text, deserves wide recognition, and former Gloucester Cathedral organist John Sanders' sensational setting of The Reproaches alone gives reason to own this disc. The well-balanced, luminous sound gives all the immediacy and presence the music requires.
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 15 tracks

  1. 1 The Reproaches 11:11
    Track
    1
    Title
    The Reproaches
    Duration
    11:11
    Composer
    John Sanders
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  2. 2 Psalm VIII 02:44
    Track
    2
    Title
    Psalm VIII
    Duration
    02:44
    Composer
    Henry Lawes, Joseph Corfe
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  3. 3 Psalm XXIII 02:27
    Track
    3
    Title
    Psalm XXIII
    Duration
    02:27
    Composer
    Charles Hylton Stewart
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  4. 4 Psalm CXXII 02:22
    Track
    4
    Title
    Psalm CXXII
    Duration
    02:22
    Composer
    Richard Woodward
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  5. 5 They that go down to the sea in ships 06:54
    Track
    5
    Title
    They that go down to the sea in ships
    Duration
    06:54
    Composer
    Herbert Sumsion
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  6. 6 Psalm LXXXIV 03:35
    Track
    6
    Title
    Psalm LXXXIV
    Duration
    03:35
    Composer
    Hubert Parry
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  7. 7 Psalm CXXX 02:23
    Track
    7
    Title
    Psalm CXXX
    Duration
    02:23
    Composer
    Charles Hylton Stewart
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  8. 8 The Lamentations of Jeremiah 08:16
    Track
    8
    Title
    The Lamentations of Jeremiah
    Duration
    08:16
    Composer
    Edward C. Bairstow
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  9. 9 The Lord is my Shepherd 04:46
    Track
    9
    Title
    The Lord is my Shepherd
    Duration
    04:46
    Composer
    Lennox Berkeley
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  10. 10 Psalm CXXI 02:32
    Track
    10
    Title
    Psalm CXXI
    Duration
    02:32
    Composer
    Noel Edison
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  11. 11 Psalm CXXXI 01:42
    Track
    11
    Title
    Psalm CXXXI
    Duration
    01:42
    Composer
    David Willcocks
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  12. 12 Like as the Hart 06:43
    Track
    12
    Title
    Like as the Hart
    Duration
    06:43
    Composer
    Herbert Howells
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  13. 13 Psalm CXLVIII 02:57
    Track
    13
    Title
    Psalm CXLVIII
    Duration
    02:57
    Composer
    Thomas Attwood Walmisley
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  14. 14 Psalm CXLIX 02:17
    Track
    14
    Title
    Psalm CXLIX
    Duration
    02:17
    Composer
    Ivor Atkins
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison
  15. 15 Psalm CL 02:20
    Track
    15
    Title
    Psalm CL
    Duration
    02:20
    Composer
    Charles Villiers Stanford
    Performer
    Michael Bloss
    Ensemble
    Elora Choir of St John's
    Conductor
    Noel Edison