I have one complaint about this CD and as,
for me, it’s quite a serious one I’ll deal with it first. It concerns
the ordering of the music, which could fairly be described as
perverse. As will be seen from the track-listing above someone
has had the bright idea of splitting up the
Westminster Mass
and interspersing its movements with other music. The four
carols that make up
Angels Sing! have likewise been separated;
that’s more tolerable, though it would still have been preferable
to programme them as the sequence that the composer presumably
intended. I can’t imagine what is the thinking behind this. Perhaps
someone thought that as the Mass movements wouldn’t be heard consecutively
in a liturgical context then it’s acceptable to separate them
on CD. But even if one accepts that argument – which I don’t –
it makes no sense to separate the Kyrie and Gloria, which would
normally follow each other as a sequence, whether in a concert
performance or in the liturgy. Even more crass are the decisions
to separate the Sanctus and Benedictus from the Memorial Acclamation
and Amen, especially with a jolly carol, and then to interpose
another extrovert carol before the Agnus Dei. This programming
is musically and liturgically insensitive, to put it mildly, and
it does a disservice to the music. In my view it would have been
far more satisfactory if the disc had begun with the plainchant
Kyrie followed by the organ solo, which is based on that chant
melody. The Mass could then have followed as an uninterrupted
sequence, followed by the miscellaneous pieces. The four carols
that constitute
Angels Sing! would have made an excellent
and coherent finale. I
know one can programme one’s CD
player but that shouldn’t be necessary. This is a very bad editorial
decision.
All right; rant over. Let’s look at the positive features of this
CD, of which, happily, there are many.
The main item is the
Westminster Mass, which was commissioned
to celebrate the 75
th birthday of Cardinal Basil Hume
(1923-1999). Originally it existed in two versions. One was with
accompaniment by organ only and in the other version the accompaniment
consists of two harps, tubular bells and strings. It was in that
latter version that I first encountered it when it was recorded
on a 1999 Teldec CD by the Westminster Cathedral Choir under James
O’Donnell (3984-28069-2) though I was surprised to see that when
the disc was reissued some years later (
review)
the Panufnik Mass had been omitted.
This present disc uses a subsequent version made for Clifton Cathedral,
Bristol, which uses one harp, bells and organ and this is its
first recording in that form. I’ve never heard the version for
organ only but since so much of Miss Panufnik’s scoring is inspired
by the sound of bells I wonder if an organ alone can do full justice
to the piece. It’s a most attractive Mass setting. The harp and
bells, which are used very effectively, add significantly to the
appeal of the music. The tone of the music itself is not always
conventional. For instance, the Gloria eschews the exuberance
of many settings. Instead the music is imbued with what the composer
refers to as “ the “glow” of the love of God and the warmth that
radiates from the first two lines [of the text].” Though much
of the music in this Mass is fundamentally joyful in tone a more
reflective tone is experienced in ‘Deus, Deus meus’. This is a
setting, for unaccompanied choir, of lines from Psalm 62 (63)
and was included at the specific request of Cardinal Hume. This
movement is intense and intersperses Latin and English words.
The Sanctus is a very pleasing movement, memorably described elsewhere
by John Steane as “not the usual awe-struck worship but a happy
gambolling of children before a throne decked for Christmas.”
In these words Steane sums up so much of the Mass – and, indeed,
the other music on the disc – which, for all its sophistication
often has a sense of innocence about it. The Agnus Dei sounds
tense and troubled at the start but after an intense climax the
music subsides to a calm ending.
The four carol settings are also very attractive. They can be
sung either in Polish or in English and it’s the latter that’s
used here. All take Polish traditional tunes as their inspiration.
Sleep Little Jesus is probably the best known – I’m sure
it’s been sung at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s
College Cambridge and it’s been recorded a few times. It’s the
only one of the four that’s scored for SATB. The others, which
were new to me, are for treble voices only and all three convey
the joy of Christmas in a fresh and pleasing way – I love the
cheeky organ part in
Jesus Christ is born today.
All the other pieces are attractive but one stood out for me,
namely
Ave Maria. One is accustomed to hearing prayerful,
reverent musical settings of this text. However, Roxanna Panufnik’s
take on it is rather different. She points out that these words
are said to have been spoken to Mary by the Angel at the Annunciation
and so, for her, “this is a moment of intense excitement, mystery
and drama.” That viewpoint stems from her own feelings when she
learned that she was pregnant. It’s an insightful thought and,
dare I say it, one that might well not have occurred to a male
composer. Fired by this idea Miss Panufnik produces a setting
of the text that is more dramatic than many, and it’s a good one.
The choir on this recording comprises boys, whose ages range from
7 to 18, and some lay clerks. They are accustomed to singing the
Roman Catholic liturgy every week at their school and elsewhere.
They make a good sound and sing with commitment and polish. Lee
Ward has evidently trained them well. The recorded sound is good
as is the documentation, which includes notes by the composer.
Despite my reservation about the programming of the disc the music
is worthwhile and very enjoyable, as are the performances, and
this disc will give a good deal of pleasure.
John Quinn
David Terry (organ) 
