The praise showered on the quality of singing heard from the Anonymous
4 over ten or so CDs [listen - The Legends of
St Nicholas, track 24, 1:20-1:50] renders the critic virtually speechless
from a chronic shortage of superlatives for the latest recording.
Here we have music for the feast of the Ascension, all scrupulously edited
with additions carefully formed from an understanding of the practices of
the time. It has been recorded in a monastic chapel in California to lend
resonance to the singing and to soak up the atmosphere [listen
- track 9, 0:00-1:00].
Such popularity as these records have clearly indicates the refreshing
quality found in the 'purity' of plainsong, the clarity and sweetness
of the voices, and the halo of reverberation that imparts warmth to the
ensemble. One is uncomfortably aware that all this 'stage management'
fundamentally serves a financial purpose, but we as listeners are entranced
by a genuine and irresistible beauty.
Copyright © 8 November 2000
Basil Ramsey, Eastwood, Essex, UK
CD INFORMATION - HARMONIA MUNDI HMU 907224
PURCHASE THIS DISC FROM AMAZON
PURCHASE THIS DISC FROM CROTCHET
BASIL RAMSEY'S REVIEW OF 'LEGENDS OF ST NICHOLAS'
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