This disc of
Elgar's choral music recorded in 1997 and 1999 is one of the last recordings conductor
Richard Marlow made with the
Trinity College Choir, Cambridge, before retiring, and, thankfully, it's as sweet as honey and even more nourishing. With the glaring exception of his well-loved oratorio The Dream of Gerontius and, of course, Land of Hope and Glory,
Elgar's choral music is relatively obscure, but the 15 works on this disc can be considered as representative of the composer's style as his better known Enigma Variations or Violin Concerto. There is a mood of deep spirituality throughout, and the level of craft shows
Elgar to have been a highly skilled and expressive choral composer.
Marlow and the men and boys of Cambridge turn in performances that meet the music technical requirements and surpass the music's interpretive demands. As always with this fine choir under
Marlow, the balances are ideal, the articulation clear, the pronunciation clean, the intonation solid, and the ensemble smoothly polished. More gratifying is the level of heart and soul offered to
Elgar's neglected music. Recorded in lush, rich digital sound, this disc offers a great deal, especially to fans of
Elgar's better-known works.