The Choir of York Minster, arguably the world's oldest musical ensemble with roots stretching back to the year 627, has a distinct sound and a different configuration from other groups in the English cathedral school. It now comprises a large group of boy and girl choristers (perhaps 30), with smaller numbers of altos, tenors, and basses. This sounds like an unwieldy group, but that's not in the least true in the hands of director Robert Sharpe, who balances the forces with impressive skill and with a deep understanding of ...
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The Choir of York Minster, arguably the world's oldest musical ensemble with roots stretching back to the year 627, has a distinct sound and a different configuration from other groups in the English cathedral school. It now comprises a large group of boy and girl choristers (perhaps 30), with smaller numbers of altos, tenors, and basses. This sounds like an unwieldy group, but that's not in the least true in the hands of director Robert Sharpe, who balances the forces with impressive skill and with a deep understanding of the acoustic of the vast York Minster. The texts are intelligible to a degree rare in choirs involving children. The music contains a few hits of the so-called English Golden Age on either side of the year 1600, but most of the pieces are just moderately well known, and they make a strong impact in these relatively forceful performances. The polyphonic essays like Thomas Tomkins' O God, the Proud Are Risen Against Me are wonderfully clear but do not neglect the limpid, simpler pieces...
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