Reviewed by Tony Cummings

When I first espied the cheap and uninformative packaging I inwardly groaned, imagining muzak-level renditions of hymns and sacred songs brought to hapless church goers by some chap and his computer. How wrong I was. This is in fact a four CD compilation of the meditative riches of the Kevin Mayhew catalogue taking in tracks from the sublime classical The Duetz Trio, the hugely popular Margaret Rizza and the St Thomas Instrumental Group, Gregorian chant from The Cathedral Singers and modern record producers like Richard Lewis and Colin Mawby. Many of the tracks here are instrumental while the repertoire chosen - everything from Johann Sebastian Bach ("Suite No 3 In G Major") to Graham Kendrick ("Come And See") - is diverse. But it works. The blurb on the box suggests this is "A collection of reflective music ranging from relaxing classical favourites to gentle arrangements of hymns and worship songs, soothing Gregorian chant, ancient Celtic-inspired music, soft piano, organ and choral music and the wonderful inspiring music of Margaret Rizza" and then goes on to suggest it is "ideal as 'stilling' music before and during church services, as a calming backdrop to school assemblies or as an aid to reflective personal prayer and meditation," which says it all really. So did 'Music For Quiet Prayer' "still" me? I think it did. What I do know is that the hauntingly beautiful "Come Holy Dove" originally on the Keith Duke album 'Sacred Weave' and "Quem Vidistis" from Chichester Cathedral Choir's 'Festival Of Anthems' had me reaching for the repeat button as my heart began to rise above the prosaic duties of the record reviewer to gentler, more exquisite climes.

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.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.