‘Music of sublime nobility, holding to Roman certainties as England ricochets between rulers, technically fascinating, upliftingly sonorous and spiritually nourishing. The singing is immaculate and joyously committed in an admirably clear and immediate recording. A composer of genius? Absolutely’ (Choir & Organ)

‘Hamelin’s interpretations of these enriching scores certainly set the bar high. His playing is both lucid and refined, with a real feel for the idiom. He also fully exploits the piano’s wide range of dynamics and tonal color. The traversals of these two cycles is indeed impressive and they stand shoulder to shoulder with some of the finest in the catalogue … the sound quality is second to none, aided by a magnificent Steinway. Booklet notes, in English, French and German are by Jessica Duchen, who offers a fine analysis of the works performed. For those unfamiliar with Fauré’s piano music, this release is certainly as good a starting point as any’ (MusicWeb International)» More

‘This disc has strengthened my previous gut instinct: Filipe de Magalhães was a very fine, expressive and skilful composer. The music is presented by a technically capable and eloquent choir, so I feel even more strongly that these are oustanding masses … Cupertinos, as I said in a review of the music by Pedro de Cristo, sing with ‘open vowels, clear tone quality, precise intonation and immaculate diction’. The bio in the booklet suggests that more critics feel the same way’ (MusicWeb International)» More

‘This is a superb album. Stephen Layton has selected some thrilling pieces and his choir, which is on tremendous form throughout, sings them wonderfully. Their performances are alive to every nuance in the music and technically the singing is beyond reproach. A special word of praise is due to the two organ scholars, Harrison Cole and Jonathan Lee. All the pieces on this disc have critically important organ parts, several of them virtuoso in nature; between them they deliver thrilling performances, exploiting to the full the resources of the Ely Cathedral organ. The performances are enhanced by the way that engineer David Hinitt and producer Adrian Peacock have effected the recording. The choir has great presence and clarity while the organ has been most excitingly captured’ (MusicWeb International)

‘Marc-André Hamelin has made a name for himself by playing extremely difficult music with ease and musicality. The latest in the Canadian-born pianist's excellent series of deeply probing recitals of unusual music, all on the Hyperion label, is devoted to Gabriel Fauré, specifically to all thirteen of the French composer's Nocturnes and all thirteen of his Barcarolles … solidifying the qualifications of this double-CD set as the best to own is the addition of a lovely rendition of Fauré's Dolly Suite, with Hamelin's wife, Cathy Fuller, on the primo part … a perceptive booklet essay by Jessica Duchen … rounds out this most alluring new release’ (IonArts.com)

‘Anthems are bread and butter in the Trinity choir’s weekly diet of chapel services, and their consummate grasp of idiom energises the opening item, Elgar’s Great is the Lord … followers of British church music will snap this refulgently sung recital up, and await eagerly its successors’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘Other ensembles have marked the Byrd anniversary with celebratory, large-scale offerings; The Gesualdo Six opt for the five-voice Mass, framed by penitential motets. The last and most richly scored of Byrd’s Masses offers perhaps the greatest scope for interpretation, with shifts and contrasts of texture to the fore, encompassing both two-voice writing and opulent chordal statements. It is a special strength of this recording that The Gesualdo Six sound pellucid and grand and yet intimate, as though combining two approaches. That’s down to a sound recording that feels very closely miked … and of course—almost needless to say by now—to the wonderful blend of sound the singers achieve. These qualities come through especially strongly in Circumdederunt me, whose special ending (or, rather, the minute or so preceding it) is a highlight; so is the expressive opening out that the singers bring to the phrase ‘dolores mortis’’ (Gramophone)

‘The Takács are impressive on this album: every micro-phrase, every note is considered. Their sound draws you in from the first moment. The opening chords and sinuous lines vibrate and thrill on many levels; this is of course to do with their rich and subtle playing but also the fantastic recorded balance. To simultaneously hear the separate parts and the collective so beautifully is a treat indeed: it feels like being right up there with them—the fifth member of the quartet. This performance offers a riveting introduction to Coleridge-Taylor’s five Fantasiestücke for those who don’t know it—a beautiful patchwork of contrasts and vibrant sonorities. With the swooping lines of the upper voices of Edward Dusinberre and Harumi Rhodes, and the deep bass lines plummeting and landing with perfect weight and trajectory, I could listen to the Prelude on repeat with pleasure’ (Gramophone)

‘We can applaud Hamelin and Hyperion for bringing us such a fine collection … Hamelin brings a warmth of expression to his playing that plumbs the depths without seeming cloying … as we have come to expect from Hyperion, everything about this release is first class. The cover features some beautiful art by Monet, the booklet presents useful information about every individual track on the two CDs as well as some biographical information about the artists, and the engineering is excellent. For those who enjoy piano music, this new release is one that you really ought to hear, especially if you have not yet experienced the magical music of that underappreciated master, Gabriel Fauré’ (Classical Candor, USA)

‘Fauré's piano music is full of intricate passage work and subtle modular harmonic shifts, more so within the Barcarolles, that require a perceptive musical mind like Hamelin's to uncover and convey … Hamelin finds the melodic core within all of its impressionistic abstraction and brings it to the surface with clear elucidation’ (Classical Music Sentinel)

‘Hollingworth conducts the Mille regretz Mass entirely without instruments, whereas Dougan conducts the Desilde al cavallero with discreet organ accompaniment. Both direct eminently sensible and musical performances. We can feel confident that the future of this bold project is in the best possible hands’ (Gramophone)

‘James O’Donnell masterminds an account of Vaughan Williams’s Mass in G minor to rank alongside the finest to have come my way. Not only is his an ideally unforced, lucid conception (the return of the Kyrie theme during the Agnus Dei at the words ‘miserere nobis’ sounding sublimely inevitable here), he also secures singing of effortless poise and heart-warming devotion from his Westminster Abbey colleagues. My goodness, the richness and vigour of RVW’s writing for his four soloists and double choir really does activate the goosebumps, yet there’s mystery and expectant hush aplenty at the heart of the Credo (‘Et incarnatus est’). Memorable, too, are those numinous undulations in the Sanctus, as well as the transcendent beauty of the work’s concluding measures. Set down last year to mark the piece’s centenary, this performance benefits from the ideally glowing acoustic of All Hallows, Gospel Oak, whereas that of O taste and see—the lovely communion anthem that RVW wrote for the coronation service of Queen Elizabeth II, and which opens with his signature phrase from ‘Sine nomine’—was recorded in Westminster Abbey itself … in sum, this classy collection will surely give lasting pleasure. Jeremy Dibble’s eloquent and scholarly annotation is a model of its kind’ (Gramophone)