Purcell: Choral and Organ Music

****

A very good overview 28 Mar 2008

Purcell is well served on disc these days, with excellent recordings (particularly those by the Kings Consort) easily available. This budget offering from Naxos is entering a crowded marketplace, and, on the surface at least, has little to distinguish it from the competition. The choir is the usual bunch of professionals, polished in word and deed, and the accompaniment comes only from a chamber organ (you don't even get a nice gut of baroque strings to fiddle away in the background (I'm not sure what the collective noun for baroque strings are: a gut seems suitable, but at times I would find "murder" or "mob" more appropriate. Clearly "gaggle" is the only apposite word for a group of oboes.))

So why do I give this disc 4 stars? Well, there is the repertoire: Purcell's full anthems (unlike his verse anthems, which are extended compositions with long solo passages and, as I infer above, orchestral accompaniment) are relatively short, quite condensed compositions, but that is where their quality lies. Often the writing seems closer to the early masters of English Protestant music (think Gibbons and Weelkes) than Vivaldi or Handel, but this is more often than not a strength, as it is Purcell's remarkable gift as a composer to create music which simultaneously allows for clear expression of the text, allied to beautiful and moving music. One need only listen to "O God, Thou art my God" to hear this demonstrated to the fullest extent.

The Oxford Camerata's discography largely consists of Renaissance and Medieval music, but I believe that it is in this, slightly later, repertoire, that Summerly really comes into his own. The balance, blend and quality of the singing is outstanding, and I have enjoyed this CD for many years now (I must have owned it for nearly 10 years). If you want a budget, one-disc introduction to a great composer, buy this.