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Track(s) taken from CDA67740

In excelsis gloria

First line:
Gloria, Christo paremur cantica
composer
1954; for the Elizabethan Madrigal Singers of the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth; revised in 1991; published in 1992
author of text
15th century

Wells Cathedral Choir, Matthew Owens (conductor)
Recording details: June 2008
Wells Cathedral, United Kingdom
Produced by Mark Brown
Engineered by Julian Millard
Release date: May 2009
Total duration: 2 minutes 23 seconds

Cover artwork: Lux in tenebris (1895). Evelyn De Morgan (1855-1919)
© The De Morgan Centre, London / Bridgeman Images
 

Reviews

‘This is one of those recordings that works its way into your spirit and enriches the soul … glorious, life-affirming and distinctive choral music in superbly polished performances’ (Gramophone)

‘This valuable anthology of Mathias's church music … the performance is marked by a palpable understanding of text and sustained concentration … excellent notes by Roderic Dunnett help enormously to 'place' both Mathias and his music’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘Mathias fanciers who already have the Christ Church Cathedral Choir or Gloriae Dei Cantores CDs can add this newcomer without significant redundancy … conductor Matthew Owens obtains a creamily blended (but not bland) sound from his 34 singers … it is nice to hear a choral group pay as much attention to meaning and characterization as it does to sound per se. Organist Jonathan Vaughn doesn't overwhelm the choristers and is given a chance to bask in his own light in the Processional and Carillon’ (International Record Review)
In In excelsis gloria, a very early carol written for the University of Aberystwyth’s madrigal choir in 1954, Mathias’s evocative parallelling, akin to thirteenth-century medieval organum, once more shares affinities with the solo and carol writing for choirs of Edmund Rubbra.

from notes by Roderic Dunnett © 2009

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