Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

Michael Wise was born around 1648 and lived, shall we say, a tempestuous life that ended after he was hit about the head and "kill'd downright" by a night-watchman in Salisbury Cathedral in 1687. Wise had recently been recommended for the post of Master of the Choristers at the newly rebuilt St Paul's Cathedral and, had he lived, it is not unlikely that he may have changed the direction of Anglican choral music. Or got into more trouble in London and come to a nasty end. What is remarkable about this collection is that it is a first. Certainly, Wise's compositions show no evidence of him being anything other than a sober and thoughtful composer and the Gonville And Caius Choir under Geoffrey Webber serve the music with an ideally-informed and energetic vigour. The choral pieces are interleaved with organ music from Wise's contemporaries Christopher Gibbons, Matthew Locke and Anonymous (He's pretty good! Editor) and these serve as a pleasant interlude although this CD should be filed as a choral collection rather than an organ recital. This recording was made in the Chapel of Pembroke College, an appropriate location as it was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and so, at long last the music of Michael Wise is heard in a building designed by the man who built St Paul's. Wise was not the greatest composer of the Restoration period but he is too good to be forgotten and Geoffrey Webber and his team have done us a service in bringing him to the attention of CD buyers.

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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