Vaughan Williams: Come down, O Love divine (Down Ampney)

There is surely no more quintessentially English sound than that of the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, its unaccompanied voices – evocative of immemorial sandstone, of cool cloisters, of evensong in church, chapel and cathedral – serene in the music of Shakespeare’s contemporaries Byrd and Gibbons, ethereal in Delius heard of a summer’s night across the Backs of the River Cam.

No less iconic is the chapel that lends its unique acoustic to that sound. One of the glories of the English perpendicular style of architecture, it was eventually completed in 1547, a little over a century after the founding of the college itself by Henry VI.

This collection opens and closes with coronation music: Zadok the Priest was written for the crowning of George II in 1727, I was glad for that of Edward VII in 1902. Both were so successful that they have been sung at every coronation since their premières. Parry’s ‘processional anthem’ is heard here in its full panoply of extra brass and shouted Vivats, the choir of King’s choir providing the semi-chorus in the exquisite interlude ‘O pray for the peace of Jerusalem’.

In between are motets ancient and modern – from the miniature If ye love me and the architectural splendour of the 40-part Spem in alium to William Harris’s dramatic double-choir Spenser setting Faire is the Heaven; well-known psalms sung to Anglican chant; and favourite hymns, notably All people that on earth do dwell, arranged ceremonially for another coronation, that of Elizabeth II.

As well as national rejoicing there is solemn remembrance. Come ye sons of art away is Purcell’s 1694 birthday ode for Queen Mary, Thou knowest, Lord part of the music he wrote for her funeral just nine months later. John Ireland’s Greater love hath no man is often heard on Remembrance Sunday; Sir John Tavener’s Song for Athene made a powerful impression at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales; while John Rutter’s small-scale, personal Requiem touched a wider public following the attacks of 11 September 2001. But ‘Nimrod’ above all epitomises music of national remembrance. Here a choral setting of it, Lux aeterna, represents our ‘Shakespeare of music’, Edward Elgar.

A new release in the Naxos wedding music series, ‘A Choral Wedding’ is a 2 CD collection of popular choral anthems and favourite hymns which have been chosen specifically as suggestions for brides and grooms planning church weddings with a choir.

CD 1 includes a variety of anthems from the popular Anglican tradition such as Wesley’s Blessed be the God and Father and Parry’s I was glad through to classical evergreens such as Mozart’s Laudate Dominum and Fauré’s Cantique de Jean Racine. There are some seasonal items too – Stainer’s God so loved the world for an Easter wedding and Lauridsen’s O magnum mysterium for a Christmas wedding.

CD 2 is a re-packaged version of Abide with Me (8557578), and includes a wide selection of congregational hymns such as sing-along favourites Jerusalem and Praise, my soul, the King of Heaven.

This CD launches yet another Hyperion series. This time we are turning our attention to the rich heritage of music sung in the Anglican church, the English hymn, which has never been systematically preserved on disc. The hymns are recorded by the mixed voices of Wells Cathedral Choir under their director, Malcolm Archer, who has made a speciality of the music and is the composer of one of the hymns. This first CD presents 22 familiar hymns from the 20th Century. Composers include Vaughan Williams, John Ireland and Herbert Howells.