Reviewed by Trevor Kirk

A good value release of classical and choral music from Patrick, conducting the English Chamber Orchestra, various soloists and the Conventus chorale. The track list is a mix of the sacred and the secular, with an arrangement of the old folk song “O Waly Waly” (also known as “The Water Is Wide” – sometimes used as the music to Watts’ hymn “When I Survey”), settings of words by Mary Coleridge and the 16th century Italian baroque poet Guarini and three poems by Patrick’s elder brother Andrew, who is an Anglican priest. The purely instrumental pieces have a very soothing lyrical quality, with the theme from the film The Incredible Mrs Ritchie an especial highlight; Patrick’s style has been compared to Delius and Vaughan Williams, and I can see why. Whilst I prefer the orchestral music to the choral, fans of either or both styles will find much to enjoy.

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