The King’s Singers: Such Stuff as Desires are Made On (Signum)
★★★★☆
In a world of mounting uncertainty, it’s a reduction to search out the King’s Singers are nonetheless round. The novelty of their act might need worn off since that inaugural London live performance in 1968 however polished a cappella singing by six male voices stays a miraculous factor and their newest album is a pleasure to spin.
The title is Shakespeare — The Tempest Act 4 (however you knew that, certainly) —and the underlying theme is the hope we cling to in occasions of mortal terror. Three Vaughan Williams songs from 1951 seize that dichotomy to the depths of its poignancy.
The album’s lead monitor is the loveliest factor I’ve ever heard from the organ-pounding Max Reger. A set of Debussy songs flutter by like a Paris sommelier previous a teetotal desk. Three Ravel chansons and a frolic by Saint-Saens are crème patissiere on a tarte tatin. The diction in three languages is spot-on.
The perfect comes within the later tracks — meditations by the brother and sister Mendelssohn, a triptych of ditties by the Swede Hugo Alfven and the English hymn to the Finlandia tune that I final heard at Jimmy Carter’s funeral. It is a superbly balanced program with out a lot as a momentary lapse. Thank heavens for the King’s.
Did I say six male voices? They sneaked two feminine sopranos into the Vaughan Williams set, which is written for eight voices. I wouldn’t have identified if the notes hadn’t talked about it, so candy is the match.
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Norman Lebrecht is among the most widely-read commentators on music, tradition and cultural politics. He’s an everyday presenter on BBC Radio 3 and a contributor to the Wall Road Journal, Bloomberg, Standpoint, Sinfini and different publications. His weblog, Slipped Disc, is among the many most generally learn cultural websites on-line, breaking unique tales and campaigning towards human abuse and acts of injustice within the cultural industries.
