Judith Bingham's compositions stand out it in the world of contemporary music, and have been said to "connect and communicate with audiences on an immediate and direct level". Her vocal and choral music has attracted attention from many sources, notably leading to requests from the King's Singers, Peter Pears and the Songmakers' Almanac. On this disc there is a close connection between performers and composer; as well as being associate composer for the BBC Singers, she is also a former member of the group, and as such has an unmatched understanding of the subtleties and nuances of composing for such a versatile ensemble. This collection of choral music draws on a wealth of literary and visual sources, ranging from the pastoral introspections of Yeats and W. H.Auden, to forgotten ghost towns of Ohio in the American West. A previous disc of Judith's choral works [with the BBC Symphony Chorus] was awarded Gramophone Editor's Choice.
“…throughout, the BBC Singers do their erstwhile colleague proud, David Hill securing performances as flexible and multi contoured as they are expressive and spatially-aware. The recorded sound is warm and natural, just like the music itself.” BBC Music Magazine, February 2009 ****
“Judith Bingham's discography is slowly catching up with her increasingly impressive body of work. The major item is Irish Tenebrae (1990, rev 1992 and 2007), a remarkable cantata in seven sections for solo and choral voices, violin, organ and percussion. Inspired by the composer's part-Irish origins, the Troubles and a love of Irish folksong, the work is a tremendous achievement, Britten-like in its range and variety... The performances by all concerned are superb, from the opening Gleams of a Remoter World (1997) and Water Lilies (1999) to the larger pieces. Strongly recommended.” Gramophone Magazine, March 2009
“Judith Bingham's discography is slowly catching up with her increasingly impressive body of work. Unsurprisingly, the releases to date have concentrated on her choral music and it is heartening to see the BBC Singers – with whom she sang as a permanent member for 12 years and has been Associate Composer for the past four – perform a whole disc's worth of repertoire mostly unavailable otherwise.
The Shepheardes Calender, a triptych written in 2006 for the St Louis Chamber Choir receives a polished and refined account, with great bite and drive. There is an expressive resonance to the central setting of Psalm 23 (in a variant textual version) and the opening 'Winter' is icy as befits the words. Unpredictable but Providential (1992, rev 2007) is a delightful skit on Elizabethan word-setting and Beneath these Alien Stars (2001), like the larger Ghost Towns of the AmericanWest (2005), sets poems by the Mormon poet Vesta Pearce Crawford.
The major item is Irish Tenebrae (1990, rev 1992 and 2007), a remarkable cantata in seven sections for solo and choral voices, violin, organ and percussion. Inspired by the composer's part-Irish origins, the Troubles and a love of Irish folksong, the work is a tremendous achievement, Britten-like in its range and variety – and expressive acuity – yet distinctly Binghamian in its sound (though quite unlike its couplings). The performances by all concerned are superb, from the opening Gleams of a RemoterWorld (1997) and Water Lilies (1999) to the larger pieces. Strongly recommended.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010
