Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

It was not until we reached the track 21 (out of 24) that I made up my mind. I was wavering between "Good" and "Excellent" until we reached verse two of "O Come, All Ye Faithful" which is sung a cappella. It was at this point the hair on the back of my neck stood up and confirmed that we were listening to something very special indeed. Without any instrumental accompaniment a choir has nowhere to hide and any weaknesses stand out like the proverbial belch in a cathedral but the Worcester Chamber Choir did not let us down and we are happy to applaud this debut recording on the ever dependable Regent Records label. To begin at the beginning: the opening piece is Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia On Christmas Carols". This is well sung and the cello playing by Joanne Jefferis takes it to a different level. I have heard several other recordings of this popular work but this is the best. Next we have "A Ceremony of Carols" by Benjamin Britten which draws on a variety of medieval and 16th century sources and is admirably embellished by Catherine White's harp playing. At 23 minutes it is twice as long as Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia" which left us wanting more. For Britten I think we can say enough is as good as a feast. The rest of the programme is varied. A nice touch is the programming of Brahms' Chorale prelude "Es Ist Ein' Ros' Entsprungen" followed a little later by Harrison Oxley's lovely arrangement of words by Praetorius and the same Brahms' melody in "Rose Carol". We also get the first recordings of two carols by Bristol composer Steven Kings, "Carol" and "O Tree!" Neither will be included in a congregational carol sheet but we hope that enterprising choir directors may introduce them into their repertoire.

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.