Bass-baritone Bryn Terfel was so prolific at one point that you wouldn't think he'd need to kill two birds with one stone, but that's what he does with Benedictus, an album of duets recorded with tenor and fellow Welshman Rhys Meirion: it serves both as an album aimed at Britain's large crossover classical audience and as a step in Terfel's pursuit of Welsh identity. Most of the music is in the Welsh language, and liner notes are in both English and Welsh. The notes describe the album as "a tribute to that [Welsh] culture." ...
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Bass-baritone Bryn Terfel was so prolific at one point that you wouldn't think he'd need to kill two birds with one stone, but that's what he does with Benedictus, an album of duets recorded with tenor and fellow Welshman Rhys Meirion: it serves both as an album aimed at Britain's large crossover classical audience and as a step in Terfel's pursuit of Welsh identity. Most of the music is in the Welsh language, and liner notes are in both English and Welsh. The notes describe the album as "a tribute to that [Welsh] culture." Benedictus, a work by Welsh composer Robat Arwyn (a friend of Terfel's), is a big, warm, Romantic setting of the "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord" text from the Catholic mass, tailor-made for classical radio airplay. Another surefire classical hit is Eli Jenkins' Prayer, a setting of a Dylan Thomas poem. The track listing on the back cover is typical of crossover releases: the poor old composers don't get credit except on the inside of the booklet. There are just...
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