Track Listing

1. I Was Glad (Parry)
2. O Thou the Central Orb (Wood)
3. Faire is the Heaven (Harris)
4. Beati Quorum Via (Stanford)
5. Blessed City Heavenly Salem (Bairstow)
6. Jerusalem (Parry)
7. Evening Hymn (Gardiner)
8. The Lord is my Shepherd (Goodall)
9. And I Saw a New Heaven (Bainton)
10. My Soul there is a Country (Parry)
11. I Saw the Lord (Stainer)
12. Like as the Hart (Howells)
13. Hail, Gladdening Light (Wood)
14. The Lord is my Shepherd (Rutter)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3565 in Music
• Released on: 2009-05-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds
• Running time: 72 minutes

CD Description
After thirty years of world-wide performance and recording, The Sixteen--"The Voices of Classic FM"--are recognised as one of the world’s greatest ensembles. Comprising both choir and period instrument orchestra, The Sixteen's total commitment to the music it performs is its greatest distinction. Its special reputation for performing early English polyphony, masterpieces of the Renaissance, bringing fresh insights into baroque and early classical music and a diversity of twentieth century music, is drawn from the passions of conductor and founder, Harry Christophers. A New Heaven narrows the gap between our secular age and a time when the Anglican Church was among the most important patrons and consumers of British music. It also offers listeners the chance to reconnect with spiritual matters richly expressed by composers with the flair and imagination required to distil big issues of life and death into miniature forms.

Customer Reviews

Choral and Sacred music miniatures
The disc comprise 14 tracks all created by British composers between the later part of the 19th century and the end of the 20th. Consequently they represent the continuity and evolution of British church music from Victorian times to the second Elizabethan age.

The composers are not characterized by their modernity but rather by their musical invention and high level of craftsmanship. And though most of them have not obtained international recognition still in all these pieces they were able to distil big issues of life and death into miniature form. The spirituality of all choral pieces had on me an emotional impact and uplifted my spirit. Forced to choose, I would opt for the work of of living composers namely track 8 The Lord is my Shepherd
by Howard Goodall and track 14 of the same name by John Rutter. Both the rendition of the choral pieces and quality of the sound are excellent.

In summary a beautiful recording by the Sixteen and their conductor and founder, Harry Christophers.

Stunning
The Sixteen is well known as being one of the world's premier chamber choirs. On this recording, which perhaps takes them outside their more familiar repertoire areas, they turn in a succession of superlative performances. It is not just the good music in which they excel, but they even managed to make "The Lord is my shepherd" listenable, rather than the somewhat hackneyed performance heard more frequently.

For this repertoire, there is no better recording - I recommend it without hesitation.

Heavenly
Some of the best English choral music written of the near past + the best English choir of the moment = a stunning CD. If you don't know the music: buy it anyway and discover some wonderful pieces. If you do know the music: experience it sung to its best.