National Youth Choir of Great Britain

“the quality of the individual voices, their complete skill in the art of choral singing and the mature musicianship evident across the choir would make this exceptional in any context...my purely critical response is that this is fabulous. It counts among the most assured, compelling and intuitive recordings yet of Gorecki's choral music...performances of consummate authority” Gramophone Magazine, July 2012

“The whole programme is outstandingly well sung...The most memorable and beautiful moments, of which there are many, tend to be when the choir is singing quietly and in the lower register.” International Record Review, July 2012

“The fresh, full-throated voices of the massed National Youth Choir of Great Britain under Michael Brewer are wonderfully affirmative and extrovert.” The Observer, 1st April 2012

“Gorecki may not be a minimalist in the strict sense of the term, but his choral works, in these beautiful interpretations by the National Youth Choir of Great Britain under Mike Brewer, are all about deriving maximum impact from minimal material...The minimalism reaches its apogee in the final section of "Salve, Sidus Polonorum"...Breathtaking.” The Telegraph, 6th April 2012

“Górecki’s majestic, slow, sacred music is sung with great control and technique by the massed voices of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain.... The clarity of the textures, the security of the pitching: both are impeccable.” The Times, 31st March 2012 ****

“Baltic repertoire is hot in choral circles at present, so this CD will find a ready specialist audience...Gabriel Jackson's Cantus Maris Baltici celebrates the sea in swirlingly ebullient writing which tests the virtuosity of the excellent National Youth Choir close to its limits. They are not found wanting.” BBC Music Magazine, March 2012 ****

“Delphian Records continue to set benchmarks for choral music on disc. The deal is sealed by the work of heroic young singers, mature and accomplished beyond their years, performing heartfelt, fascinating compositions.” Classic FM Magazine, February 2012 *****

“Mike Brewer's intrepid young choristers are on glowingly excellent form throughout. Hats off to them for tackling such stimulating and little-known repertory with gusto and obvious enjoyment...An outstanding disc which emphasises how fortunate the NYCGB is to have Brewer's drive and energy.” Gramophone Magazine, February 2012

“The virtuosic NYCGB and top choral trainer Mike Brewer revel in the rich cluster-harmonies and religious colours of native Baltic works alongside Cantus Maris Baltici by the UK's Gabriel Jackson. Essential for choral fans.” The Observer, 18th December 2011

"a firebomb of orchestral and human voices" The Times

“…though, this is a disc of stunning music beautifully performed.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2009 ****

“Sanctum est verum lumen… comes across as an astonishing tour de force, the strands of musical texture cascading through this cast choir with glorious luminosity. These young singers take the work to heart and beyond the almost incredible choral discipline and uniformity of tone that Brewer produces from well over 200 individual voices, there is a real sense of enthusiasm which never intrudes into the technical security of the performance but adds a lovely lustre to Delphian's luxuriant recording. It is... unusual to hear Spem in alium performed with... between five and six voiced per part. ...if one is prepared to put thoughts of authenticity aside, the results are spine-tinglingly spectacular.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2009

“On the whole the choral singing is admirably disciplined and contoured. The most impressive passages tend to be the fullest homophonic sections which close pieces; but "So fahr ich hin zu Jesu Christ" shows that the choir is also adept at music requiring lighter and flexible singing.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2008

“choral singing of the very first rank” International Record Review

“something very, very special … superb music, brilliantly interpreted and well recorded” The Organ

“The two choirs on this disc… enter whole-heartedly into the spirit of the music.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2006 ****

“Giles Swayne's A Convocation of Worms (1995) is a 20-minute cantata for countertenor and organ setting a thoroughly alarming 15th-century text, adapted from the Coventry miracle plays, in which Death, appearing at Herod's court after the massacre of the innocents, effects instant retribution, declaring that 'where I smite, there is no grace'. This stark mixture of menace and lament is a gift for a composer with Swayne's propensity for questioning received social and religious conventions from the inside, and even if the austerity of the work's central stages risks some loss of impact, the effect of the whole is powerful and memorable. Stephen Wallace and Michael Bonaventure do it proud, and it's recorded, like everything on the disc, in a spacious acoustic which doesn't compromise clarity of texture.
One short, bold organ piece apart, the rest of the music is choral, and includes three of Swayne's most attractive successes: Magnificat, The Tiglet (that is, Blake's 'The Tyger'), and Missa Tiburtina. The National Youth Choir of Great Britain and its offshoot Laudibus tackle this music with enormous energy and skill.
There is less to enjoy in Midwinter – setting Christina Rossetti's cringingly sentimental verse in 2003 might be thought a touch eccentric – but the Four Passiontide Motets include some of Swayne's most cogent musical imagery and abound in imaginative textures. A highly commendable enterprise.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

““The stark mixture of menace and lament (A Convocation of Worms) is a gift for a composer with Swayne’s propensity for questioning received social and religious conventions from the inside…the effect of the whole is powerful and memorable. Stephen Wallace and Michael Bonaventure do it proud…this is a highly commendable enterprise.” Arnold Whittall (Gramophone)” Gramophone Magazine

"Their stylish singing of baroque, romantic or contemporary music has to be heard to be believed." John Eliot Gardiner

“startlingly impressive” CD Review

“Magical moments abound” Gramophone Magazine