Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

The Finchley Children's Music Group was founded in 1958 to give the first amateur performance of Benjamin Britten's 'Noye's Fludde'. The link with Britten is continued here with three of his seasonal songs: "The Birds", "Corpus Christi Carol" and "King Herod And The Cock". However, out of the 22 tracks Gustav Holst beats Britten into second place with five. And in third place is, of course, John Rutter with his good friend "traditional, arranged by". The title track is by Peter Warlock who also contributes "Balualow" and "The First Mercy". Space does not allow a list of all the songs but I hope this gives an idea of the contents. As to the performance, the FCMG are rightly regarded as one of the best youth choirs in the country and could give some cathedral choirs a run for their money. Many of the songs are a cappella although John Evanson does accompany some on piano or organ and on "The Sussex Carol" the tenor Philip Langridge joins the young people. All in all, this is an enjoyable collection that is raising money for HOPE For Children and is well worth your £4.99.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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