Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

This is St John's second release under Director of Music Christopher Gray and is a collection of popular Christmas carols with contemporary additions to the seasonal repertoire, much of which has been tested live on tour and in the college's annual Advent and Christmas performances. As Gray says: "My aim with this album has not been to break new ground with repertoire, but to ensure that classics remain fresh for the current generation." The album covers nearly two centuries of Christmas choral music. Francis Poulenc's atmospheric "Quatre Motets Pour Le Temps de Noël" is at the heart of the programme along with "Three Carol-Anthems" by Herbert Howells, who was the Director of Music at St John's during the Second World War. The album also includes a recording of John Rutter's "There Is A Flower", written for the Choir in 1985 and released as a single on the composer's 80th birthday, 24th September 2025. Alongside other favourites such as the title track, Adolphe Adam's timeless "O Holy Night", "Sussex Carol" and "In Dulci Jubilo", the album also features some more recent additions to the repertoire. Master of the King's Music Errollyn Wallen's 2006 work "Peace On Earth" features alongside Sally Beamish's "In The Stillness", Jonathan Dove's "The Three Kings" with lyrics by Dorothy L Sayers, Becky McGlade's setting of Christina Rosetti's "In The Bleak Midwinter" and Tamsin Jones's "Noel: Verbum Caro Factum Est" from 2017. To fall back on a Christmas cliché, this is a musical selection box with some absolute favourites mixed in with some to try for the first time. For this listener, the earworms are "O Holy Night", 'There Is A Flower" and John Jubert's "There Is No Rose" but while St John's Choir does all three full justice, I have other recordings which are just as good. Likewise, I always enjoy Poulenc but do not need another recoding of his four motets. Of the pieces that are less familiar (at least to me) I do not need a new setting of "In The Bleak Midwinter" but Jonathan Dove's "The Three Kings" is one I Bill return to and if the choir with which I sing needs something new for a future Christmas programme this would be one I would recommend. However, putting these personal preferences to one side, this is a thoughtfully programmed collection with a mix of old favourites and newer works that all deserve a listen even if one doubts whether all will last, and all the singing is first class throughout.

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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