Rejoice the Lamb/Hymn To

Iain Farrington (organ), Benedict Giles (treble), Malcolm Green (bass), Simon Wall (tenor), Thomas Williams (alto), Joseph Helps (treble), Oliver Lepage-Dean (treble), Christopher de la Hoyde (alto), William Goldring (treble), Edward Minton (treble), Ben Harrison (treble) & St. John's College Choir, Cambridge, Christopher Robinson

Britten:
 A Hymn of Saint Columba
 A Hymn to the Virgin
 Antiphon, Op. 56b
 Festival Te Deum in E, Op. 32 
 Hymn to St Cecilia, Op. 27 
 Hymn to St. Peter, Op. 56a
 Jubilate Deo in C major (1961)
 Missa Brevis in D major, Op. 63
 Prelude & Fugue on a Theme of Vittoria
 Rejoice in the Lamb, Op. 30
 Te Deum in CChristopher Robinson

"As with other recent records from St John's, there's a freshness, almost a feeling of adventure and a sense that all this choral discipline is an easy yoke. These are excellent performances, the opening item setting a standard which is to be maintained throughout. Buoyant rhythms, precise accentuations and well-pointed contrasts are features of the singing; and the playing of Ian Farrington in accompaniments that are often difficult and always demanding of maximum alertness, is outstanding. Outstanding, too, is the contribution of the trebles. In tone they preserve the traditional John's sound, without exaggerating its so-called continental element.

But what impresses most is the sense of imaginative involvement. It's there, for instance, in the Kyrie of the Missa brevis, and most of all in the 'I cannot grow' section of A Hymn to St Cecilia. To this they bring a distinctive excitement, a wideeyed, breathlessly playful feeling of childlike wonder. The programme itself is highly attractive.

The 'hymns' are fully developed compositions, and the canticles are notably independent of tradition (for instance, a quietly meditative note of praise is struck at the start of both Te Deums). The Missa brevis makes inventive use of its forces; and Rejoice in the Lamb, a masterly expression of the liberal spirit, never ceases to amaze with its evocation of the cat Jeoffry, valiant mouse and staff-struck poet. Recorded sound isn't as vivid as the performances, but this remains a very likeable disc."
Gramophone Classical Music Guide - 2010