Beware, under its “crossover” façade this 2 hours+ of vocal music which continuously alternates between pieces from the Renaissance or early Baroque, including an intense vision of Claudio Monteverdi's Lagrime d'amante al sepolcro dell'amata, (SV 111 from Book VI of the Madrigals) - and more modern pieces such as the famous Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen in a moving transcription or Britten’s Hymn to St. Cecilia, are a real splendour. The rare cantata BWV 150 by J. S. Bach can also be found in its entirety. Throughout the album, the voices are splendid, the performances of this British a cappella octet (founded in 2005) are constantly lively and intense, and the close yet spacious sound recording brings all the harmonic friction to life. With 33 tracks (a sacred number par excellence), After Silence celebrates the ensemble’s fifteen years of existence led by its countertenor Barnaby Smith and constitutes a convincing panorama of five centuries of vocal music, in sometimes surprising yet always natural sequences, like between the cantata by the Leipzig Cantor and the restful Earth Song by Frank Ticheli. The most contemporary pieces such as Jonathan Dove's Vertue or Philip Stopford's Lully, Lulla, Lullay are performed with the same intensity as the more well-known scores... An essential release, a zenith of emotions which leaves a lasting impression. One last word: if you liked our Qobuzissime Duruflé in spring 2019 (Houston Chamber Choir / Robert Simpson), this release is really for you. © Pierre-Yves Lascar/Qobuz