PRESS REVIEWS 2012

“The BBC Singers deliver the Three Marian Carols with affecting plainness and clear, unaffected diction. ..Iain Farrington brings life and atmosphere to the organ pieces.”
-Brian Morton, Choir & Organ Jan/Feb 2013

“[Hulett’s] light, perfectly tuned tone seems absolutely right for this repertory. His diction is impeccable, as is his effortless communication of the shape and phraseology of Spenser’s verse… Luke Green’s harpsichord accompaniments underpin the vocal line with delicate propriety…this recording succeeds on all fronts… it leaves me wanting to hear more of Benjamin Hulett and Maurice Greene.”
-Simon Heighes, IRR February 2013

“Benjamin Hulett gives a good and committed account of [the sonnets]…he is firmly backed by a continuo team who vary the textures intelligently. An interesting find, this.”
-Lindsay Kemp, Gramophone February 2013

“[Spenser’s]  Amoretti, written in 1738, were originally written for soprano and continuo, but transfer seamlessly to tenor; here they receive beautiful and impassioned performances by Benjamin Hulett, whose limpid and agile voice is perfect for this music…[Luke Green] and Giangiacomo Pinardi make an excellent continuo team, whose realisations both are tasteful and expertly matched to the varying moods of each sonnet.” 4*
-AH, Early Music Today, December 2012

“[The Three Services] are so well sung here by the Lincoln Cathedral Choir, very sensitively recorded in the great building that is its daily home, that no listener of whatever persuasion can miss the atmosphere… the clear lines and clean attack, so necessary in the spacious acoustic, have been honed to good effect by Aric Prentice.”
-Piers Burton-Page, International Record Review January 2013

“Lincoln Cathedral Choir under Aric Prentice’s enthusiastic direction give excellent performances, with impeccable blend and ensemble. The balance between the lower and  upper voices is ideal, and the overall sound is crowned by the bright-toned trebles…. A very enjoyable and rewarding disc, showcasing the fine quality of British cathedral music-making.”
-Christopher Nickol, Gramophone January 2013

“Here’s an excellent idea: a whole CD of John Ireland’s church music, which tends to be scattered piecemeal in anthologies. The impression it makes is very positive… the clean attach and alluring tonal finish of the boy-girl sopranos catch the ear particularly… the tutti singing is convincingly uninhibited.” 4*/4*
-Terry Blain, BBC Music Magazine January 2013

“You could scarcely do better than this CD…Tianwa Yang and Nicholas Rimmer sound quite at home, even in the most difficult passages, and imbue these works with emotion, as well as meeting their technical challenges with aplomb… yet again, Naxos deserves parise for making contemporary music accessible at reasonable cost, and through excellent performances.” 5*/4*
-Barry Witherden, BBC Music Magazine January 2013