Michael Greenhalgh - Recording of the year 2019

“The title is that of a world premiere recording of Judith Bingham’s selection from Gurney’s poems, a purely vocal piece which mixes a choral starscape and soloist arioso interspersed with choral tombstone statements and the wailing of the spirits. Time present and past coalesce, fear and ecstasy combine and the cruel high tessitura is grippingly realized.”

“… As advocacy goes, it’s hard to imagine Gurney getting better than this.” **** 

Recommended

“…The programme has an illuminating quality; add Sarah Connolly in glorious voice and the whole product is special.”

“… This double album presents four Gurney works alongside pieces by composers associated with him. Plus Judith Bingham’s title track, a powerful acapella choral work setting extracts from Gurney’s poems and inscriptions taken from Roman tomb memorials found in Gurney's native Gloucestershire. The stark, declamatory Latin texts, sung by offstage male chorus, contrast brilliantly with Bingham’s settings of the poetry, ancient and modern history colliding to powerful effect. Sarah Connolly is in fine voice, similarly impressive in Herbert Howells’ idiomatic transcriptions of Gurney's By a Bierside and In Flanders, plus Gerard Finzi's realisation of Sleep. There's some radiant playing from the Aurora Orchestra, opening the set with an austerely beautiful reading of Vaughan Williams's Tallis Fantasia under Nigel Short … Tenebrae, Short’s crack choir, are peerless in the other Vaughan Williams numbers: Valiant for Truth and Lord thou hast been our refuge are both extraordinarily potent outpourings from an avowed agnostic. And there's a rare chance to hear the expansive An Oxford Elegy, orchestra and wordless choir combining to ravishing effect.”

"... Even in a smaller space, Tenebrae always sound rich and resonant, and they carry the choral pieces here with absolute control and authority. It's a big listen, but a compelling one and RVW's An Oxford Elegy - one of whose dead was, of course Gurney - is genuinely moving." ****

“… a wonderfully sonorous and uplifting … splendid collection that I recommend to Society members with all possible enthusiasm.”