The group of 15 singers, directed by Daniel Kelly, presented an hour of Christmas-themed acapella repertoire, achieving an impressive, tight blend throughout, with a fine palette of nuance.
Minimum vibrato and pure sound delivered the mostly non-English text, gaining resonance in the cathedral acoustics, to achieve a restful contemplative ambience.
The opening group of motets by 20th century composers, mostly inspired by Gregorian chants, included O Magnum Mysterium by New Zealand composer David Childs, and an impressive eight-part piece, Maria durch ein Dornwald ging, by Stefan Claas.
An interesting contrast was the setting of Bogorodyitse Dyevo by two different composers, Arvo Part and Sergei Rachmaninoff.
The texts were the same but treated very differently, because the fast and poignant Part version was apparently written for a choir with only one minute’s time to sing. The longer version was soft and calming with Russian Orthodox harmonic character.
Highlights in the programme’s second bracket were Esti Dal by the renowned Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly, and an arrangement of Saenk kun dit hoved, du blomst by Carl Nielsen, which featured a soloist over hummed harmonic fabric - very serene, with haunting melody lines by soprano Catherine Daly-Reeve.
Soprano Holly White featured similarly in Underneath the Stars when again purity of tone over a harmonic backdrop ensured the vocal beauty this genre demands.
The recital ended with a 16th century five-voice motet, Hodie Christus Natus est (Sweelinck) - robust and well-paced, with descending vocal patterns suggesting the peal of Christmas bells.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable programme of traditional pre-Christmas music presented by a disciplined and dedicated acapella group.
