Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

Before I sing the praises of both Paul Mealor the composer and Voce the performers I must say a word to the wise: "Voce" as either the name of a choir or part of an album title is not uncommon so if searching on-line please check you have found what you are looking for. This particular Voce is a chamber choir founded in New England in 2006 by artistic director Mark Singleton and president Tom Cooke with the aspiration to "serve harmony". They are certainly doing that. The vocal blend is exquisite with some outstanding soloists and I have not enjoyed listening to a choir so much since I first heard Suzy Digby's ORA. If you have any interest in choral singing Voce will not fail to please. All the compositions on this collection are by the versatile Welsh composer Paul Mealor (born 1975) who has been working with Voce since 2017. Nearly all the 17 tracks on 'Blessing' are settings of explicitly Christian texts, the exception being "Let Fall The Windows Of Mine Eyes" which is three short speeches from various plays by William Shakespeare, the "Windows" quote coming from Richard III. Nicely done and beautifully sung. The opener is a brave declaration of intent, being a new setting of "Let All the World In Every Corner Sing" based around Psalm 150. In my mental hymnal this goes to the tune "Luckington" but I enjoyed Mealor's just as much and would be happy to sing it myself. Some congregations may take some persuasion but if the choir learns it first, I think many will be convinced. Other new tunes for old words include "If Ye Love Me" from John's Gospel where, for me, Thomas Tallis will remain my preferred version, and Christina Rossetti's "In the Bleak Midwinter". This, though, is the third of three Rossetti texts in a sequence entitled "To Seek Where Shadows Are", where it follows "Dreamland" and "Dreaming" and in this new context the new tune for "Bleak Midwinter" does not sound out of place. Again, congregations singing in a carol service may not welcome an unfamiliar tune but if they were to hear the choir sing it, they may think again - and I think many choirs would enjoy this setting very much. Indeed, this is a choral collection rather than hymnody and many choir directors will take inspiration from Mealor's work, from his thoughtful setting of "The Beatitudes" through to the conclusion with a traditional Gaelic Blessing, this one with a Scottish flavour reminiscent of Sir James MacMillan and appropriate given that it was commissioned by Aberdeen University. We also get "The Selwyn Service", composed when Mealor was a visiting fellow at Selwyn College, Cambridge, and fresh looks at ever-popular choral pieces including "Ave Maria Stella", "Jubilate Deo" and "Ave Verum Corpus". Paul Mealor's compositions are all accessible, tuneful and appropriate to the chosen texts and Voce's singing, often a cappella, is of the highest standard.

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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