Chapel Choir of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
William Vann director
Callum Knox organ
SOMM CD 0714
The great joy of this disc is threefold. Firstly, we are treated to some pieces of Elgar that one rarely encounters, such as the three early settings of O Salutaris Hostia. Secondly, it mixes oratorio extracts, for example such as the Prologue from The Apostles, with anthems for example the vast canvas of Great is the Lord. In addition, we have delightful part-songs such as How calmly the evening. And fourthly, the booklet takes us through Elgar’s composing career through the lens of these choral works.
A category I have not yet mentioned is the contribution Elgar made to what one might call day-to-day church services, and again these are not commonly explored. There is an innovative double chant, given here by William Vann as suitable for a penitential Psalm, the hymns Praise ye the Lord which is especially suitable for a Roman Catholic service, and a setting of a few verses from the Stabat Mater. The disc ends with Elgar’s arrangement, made in 1902, of God save the King, originally for orchestra, but here with organ. The first verse is given to a solo soprano before the remaining two verses.
But I feel that the highlights of the disc are the selected Part-songs and Choral songs. One is struck again by the originality and fervency of these settings. The choir works very hard at communicating this passion although they sometimes push the tone quality too much. Go, song of mine shows the composer’s maturity at its best, as does Deep in the Soul from Opus 53, composed just before the first war.
Andrew Neill’s booklet essay is very helpful as he takes us through the music chronologically. He sets it out in five sections. First, a general introduction, then The St. George’s Years, next, ‘Branching out’ taking us from 1896, then At the Heart of British Music from about 1903, and finally, Mastery of Form and the Choral Songs.
The Chapel Choir of the Chelsea Hospital consists of 18 strong and young voices, four of whom are fine soloists. They are very impressive in the ‘big’ music such as the choruses from the oratorio The Light of Life. However, I feel that a little more intimacy is needed in some of the part songs and sacred works such as the gently reflective How calmly the evening. But I would recommend this recording to all lovers of choral music.
Review by Gary Higginson