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Give The Sixteen and their director Harry Christophers credit: with the choir's satisfying bright, yet rounded, sound, and an abundance of well-loved Christmas season repertory on hand, it would be hard to imagine their not making a Christmas album that people want to buy, even if they pretty much phoned it in. And they have not done that in the least: despite its generic title, Song of the Nativity is a fresh take on the holiday release with a unique structure. The program alternates traditional carols -- mostly monophonic, with a bit of simple traditional, multi-part writing in some -- with pieces from the contemporary tonal choral school. Thus there are none of the Renaissance choral pieces that are standard on such releases. The contemporary works are mostly English, but the program opens with the striking O magnum mysterium of the American Morten Lauridsen, a work inspired not by scripture, but by the painting Still Life with Lemons, Oranges, and a Rose by Francisco Zurbarán (1598-1664). This combination plays to the strengths of The Sixteen, with their capacity for a clean yet reverential tone. The overall effect is of a tableau of paintings, some simple and folk-like, some richly chromatic, with the traditional carols appearing as moments of utter clarity. The contrast diminishes toward the end of the program, with favorites by Rutter, his follower Cecilia McDowall, and Bob Chilcott, but sample the Lauridsen or the rather austere Adam lay ybounden by Howard Skempton for the full effect. A strong entry in the holiday season competition for 2016 and beyond.
© TiVo
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Morten Lauridsen, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Faber Music Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Howard Skempton, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Mark Dobell, MainArtist - Ben Davies, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Gabriel Jackson, Composer - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher - Julie Cooper, MainArtist
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Peter Warlock, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Boosey & Hawkes Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Will Todd, Composer - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - John Ireland, Composer - Boosey & Hawkes Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Henry Walford Davies, Composer - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
John Gardner, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Novello & Co. Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Cecilia McDowall, Composer
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Jeremy Budd, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher - Alexandra Kidgell, MainArtist
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Boris Ord, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Novello & Co. Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Alec Roth, Composer - Katy Hill, MainArtist - Peters Edition Ltd, MusicPublisher - Elilia Morton, MainArtist
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Bob Chilcott, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
John Rutter, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher - Alexandra Kidgell, MainArtist
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - Alan Bullard, Composer - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Traditional, Composer - The Sixteen, Ensemble - Harry Christophers, Conductor - Oxford University Press, MusicPublisher - Emilia Morton, MainArtist
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
The Sixteen, Ensemble, MainArtist - Harry Christophers, Conductor, MainArtist - James MacMillan, Composer - Boosey & Hawkes Ltd, MusicPublisher
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
Album review
Give The Sixteen and their director Harry Christophers credit: with the choir's satisfying bright, yet rounded, sound, and an abundance of well-loved Christmas season repertory on hand, it would be hard to imagine their not making a Christmas album that people want to buy, even if they pretty much phoned it in. And they have not done that in the least: despite its generic title, Song of the Nativity is a fresh take on the holiday release with a unique structure. The program alternates traditional carols -- mostly monophonic, with a bit of simple traditional, multi-part writing in some -- with pieces from the contemporary tonal choral school. Thus there are none of the Renaissance choral pieces that are standard on such releases. The contemporary works are mostly English, but the program opens with the striking O magnum mysterium of the American Morten Lauridsen, a work inspired not by scripture, but by the painting Still Life with Lemons, Oranges, and a Rose by Francisco Zurbarán (1598-1664). This combination plays to the strengths of The Sixteen, with their capacity for a clean yet reverential tone. The overall effect is of a tableau of paintings, some simple and folk-like, some richly chromatic, with the traditional carols appearing as moments of utter clarity. The contrast diminishes toward the end of the program, with favorites by Rutter, his follower Cecilia McDowall, and Bob Chilcott, but sample the Lauridsen or the rather austere Adam lay ybounden by Howard Skempton for the full effect. A strong entry in the holiday season competition for 2016 and beyond.
© TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 22 track(s)
- Total length: 01:13:42
- 1 Digital booklet
- Main artists: The Sixteen Harry Christophers
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Coro
- Genre: Classical
(C) 2016 The Sixteen Productions (P) 2016 The Sixteen Production Ltd
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