'[The LSQ] are phenomenally talented saxophonists: Joel Garthwaite (sop.), Hannah Riches (alto), Lewis Evans (tenor) and Lauren Hamer ( bari.) … Apart from the exquisite performance standards, the internal balance is perfect, the recording quality superb … LSQ plays magnificently throughout' (Clarinet & Saxophone)» More

‘An unexpected pleasure … fine performances from Schola Cantorum and the excellent James Burton’ (Oxford Today)

‘Schola Cantorum of Oxford dig into these works with such relish and enthusiasm, displaying an obvious love for this music, and cementing the idea of Thompson's universal appeal’ (Audiophile Audition, USA)

‘Randall Thompson has been much recorded in the US … but none match the sensitivity and accuracy of James Burton's consort. Thompson's fusion of 18th-century harmony with 20th-century word-painting techniques into something totally original shows why choirs love his music’ (Classical Music)

‘Schola Cantorum's program is nothing less than a treasure-trove … and so are James Burton and his excellent choir, who take on these often unassuming and straightforward, sometimes very demanding, technically unforgiving works with enthusiasm and commitment … anyone who loves choral music will be right at home here’ (Classics Today)

‘A vivid response to words is paramount in the 1936 sacred motet sequence The Peacable Kingdom … the performances do full justice to this little-known repertoire’ (Choir & Organ)

‘James Burton inspires Oxford's classy intercollegiate choir to realise a masterpiece in Randall Thompson's The Peaceable Kingdom … the bright, lithe sopranos are absolutely together … the stimulating rhythms, exquisite tuning, rich word painting and constant attention to imaginative dynamics make this an outstanding performance’ (The Times)

‘This superb recording … the performances are first rate, Thompson's lucid yet never naïve word-painting realised with great sensitivity to both the musical and verbal fabrics … the overall blend and balance of voices … is also a great source of pleasure, adding much to Thompson's sweet and subtle yet wholly persuasive rhetoric. The recording … is as luminous and attractive as Thompson's music, while composer Morten Lauridsen's expert booklet notes provide much useful biographical and technical information. Thompson may have been writing for his own day, but with advocates of the calibre of the present performers it's a safe bet that his musical legacy will continue to reach and move the hearts of a wide audience for some time to com’ (International Record Review)

‘The Schola Cantorum under James Burton radiates in performances that could not be bettered’ (Gramophone)

‘Thomson's music is as American as apple pie and wonderfully evocative’ (Gramophone)

‘At the time I thought it the best lute song recital ever, and there are few even now that can match this for quality, on every level (and they're nearly all by Emma, anyway)’ (Early Music Review)

'This fine selection was recorded at the Barbican last year, and is played with terrific panache by the London Symphony Orchestra under Richard Kaufman' (The Guardian)