Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

The full title helps give the full picture: ‘Victorian Voluntaries And Concert Pieces For Organ Based On Hymns, Chorales And Psalm-Tunes”. We get eight pieces by seven composers played on the “Milton” organ at Tewkesbury Abbey by Professor Graham Barber. The organ's history is fascinating: it was built in 1631, moved from Oxford to Hampton Court in 1654 where the poet Milton is reputed to have played it and thus given its nickname, and arrived in Tewkesbury in 1737. Our organist plays an interesting selection, putting the organ through all of its paces. Most of the pieces are contemplative, including the title track by Charles Steggall, and others rousing, such as the finale “Corde Natus Ex Parentis: A Symphonic Poem” by Charles William Pearce. All are played remarkably well; the sound quality is first class and the 68 minutes of the recital fly by. Organ buffs will want to investigate this collection. Casual listeners may well enjoy it too.

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