Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

Edvard Grieg is not well known for his choral work but the 13 songs on this hybrid disc are all excellent examples of his skill as a composer. Do not be put off by the fact that this is a SACD recording as it plays on regular CDs as well and sounds superb. The singing, unaccompanied throughout, is by Det Norske Solistkor (that's the Norwegian Soloists' Choir to us). The 26 hand-picked singers are all soloists in their respective genres and collectively deserve to be ranked with any of the best choirs anywhere in the world. The music is a mixture of sacred and secular and Grieg has the happy knack of being able to find the right voice for the words - not unlike Sullivan's ability to set both the serious and silly to appropriate tunes. Listen, for example, to "Kveldssang For Blakken" or "Goodnight Song For Dobbin". Even without looking at the translation of the lyrics one can get an idea of what it is about through the music. The sacred pieces are the moving "Withered, Fallen (At The Bier Of A Young Wife)", "Ave, Maris Stella" and "Four Psalms" (or "Fire Salmer" if you want to learn Norwegian). The remaining songs are examples of the rich folk tradition from Norway and any listener who likes strong melodies, imaginative harmonies and excellent singing will not be disappointed by this release.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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