Mater ora filium: Music for Epiphany (2016)

performed by Alexander Porteous (tenor), Laurence Harris (baritone), Michael Papadopoulos (organ), Clare College Choir, Cambridge (choir, chorus), Graham Ross (conductor)
composed by Anonymous, Arnold Bax, Christmas Traditional, Francis Poulenc, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Herbert Howells, Jacobus Clemens Non Papa, Jean Mouton, John Jacob Niles, John Sheppard, Judith Bingham, Judith Weir, Lennox Berkeley, Orlande de Lassus

This release is part of a series by the Choir of Clare College, Cambridge, under director Graham Ross; each volume is devoted to a specific point in the Catholic liturgical calendar, in this case Epiphany. There's nothing terribly groundbreaking about the mix of music from, specifically, the 16th and 20th centuries, but all the releases have been well done, and this one is perhaps especially satisfying. The singular focus of the program adds to the listener's awareness of small details in the music, and on top of that, Ross ... Read More

This release is part of a series by the Choir of Clare College, Cambridge, under director Graham Ross; each volume is devoted to a specific point in the Catholic liturgical calendar, in this case Epiphany. There's nothing terribly groundbreaking about the mix of music from, specifically, the 16th and 20th centuries, but all the releases have been well done, and this one is perhaps especially satisfying. The singular focus of the program adds to the listener's awareness of small details in the music, and on top of that, Ross picks pieces that are varied despite the seemingly small range. He offers some pleasant arrangements of traditional pieces that clear the palate, so to speak, in both the Renaissance and contemporary halves of the program. And instead of a sequence of stylistically similar, three-minute pieces, everything leads up to the finale, the luminous title work by Arnold Bax. Sample this for a taste of what this choir can do when it has all cylinders firing; the lush sound of Bax's choral... Read Less