Reviews
Press notices and interviews, by year.
2006
- The Eastern Daily PressAldeburgh Festival: PolyphonyThis world-renowned festival (happily on our doorstep) entered its second week with two exciting and…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineVillette: Choral Music'The Holst Singers create great clouds of texture, which surge, form, and melt before your ears … For a bag…CD Review
- Choir and OrganVillette: Choral Music'Whether chant-inspired, leaning towards a jazz idiom or chromaticism, the music is an unusual hybrid. The…CD Review
- International Record ReviewVillette: Choral Music'This is simply gorgeous music which has not so much moments of sublime beauty as virtually no passages which…CD Review
- Fanfare USAVillette: Choral Music'The Holst Singers’ blend, diction, intonation, and ensemble are uniformly up there with the best, as is the…CD Review
- American Record GuideVillette: Choral MusicThe Holst Singers - Stephen Layton's 'other' great choir - is every bit as skilled, sonorous and sensitive as…CD Review
- Choral Guide USAVillette: Choral Music'This recording offers the most comprehensive compilation of Villette’s choral music in print. Layton’s…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineVillette: Choral MusicVillette: Choral Music - Classic FM Magazine 'Shades of Messiaen, Duruflé, Gregorian chant and jazz tinge…CD Review
- Opera News, New YorkWhitacre: Cloudburst'Theirs [Polyphony] is the sort of virtuosity that calls no attention to itself but unfolds the music with a…CD Review
- CNN NewsWhitacre: Cloudburst'This one is in the We Told You So Department. American composer Eric Whitacre in his mid-30s, is, with the…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- Gramophone MagazineWhitacre: Cloudburst'This beautifully performed and recorded CD contains the bulk of Whitacre's choral canon and displays his…CD Review
- International Record ReviewWhitacre: Cloudburst'I would certainly urge anyone with a love of choral singing to buy this disc, not merely to sample this…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicWhitacre: Cloudburst'This is one of the most exciting discs to come onto the market... The whole experience is simply stunning…CD Review
- ClassicsTodayFrance.comWhitacre: Cloudburst'Il y a des disques dont on n'attend rien et qui nous donnent tous! Eric Whitacre se spécialise dans la…CD Review
- The TimesWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- The Rochester City NewsWhitacre: CloudburstFor months I've been driving around entranced, listening to Cloudburst, a stunning CD from British choral…CD Review
- Encore USAWhitacre: CloudburstA lifetime of listening to choral music had not prepared me for such lush harmonies-a cappella voices…CD Review
- BBC Radio 3Whitacre: CloudburstRight. Stop making the coffee: leave the washing for two minutes, muzzle your children, pull over to the side…CD Review
- The Chicago TribuneWhitacre: CloudburstComposer Eric Whitacre's new Hyperion release marks a most enjoyable collection of his works for (mostly)…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalWhitacre: CloudburstLast year Stephen Layton and Polyphony gave us a very fine CD devoted to the music of the American composer…CD Review
- ClassicsToday.comWhitacre: CloudburstYou hear about huge advance orders for the latest CD by the biggest, hottest pop superstar, or for the most…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineVillette: Choral Music'Shades of Messiaen, Duruflé, Gregorian chant and jazz tinge Villette's elegant, unpretentious motets…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicVillette: Choral Music'If I was going to choose a record company to commit Villette's music to disc, then Hyperion would be my…CD Review
- The Daily ExpressWhitacre: Cloudburst'Whitacre creates magical compositions that are stunning in their power. A beautiful album'CD Review
- Fanfare USAWhitacre: Cloudburst'Whitacre has experienced enormous success recently, writing choral and wind ensemble music. It's not hard to…CD Review
- Early Music ReviewHandel: MessiahThe conclusion of the St John’s, Smith Square Festival was the annual sell-out Messiah given by the…Concert Review
- The Independent on SundayWhitacre: Cloudburst'Ethereal and chillingly beautiful choral works - an intense and moving aural experience'CD Review
2023
2022
- Messiah at St John's Smith Square, December 2022“I come to hear this every year. For me this is when Christmas begins.” So said the man sitting next to me…Concert Review
- Planet HugillJoy and DevotionJoy and Devotion: Stephen Layton and Polyphony in seven UK premieres including Paweł Łukaszewski's mass…Concert Review
2019
2018
- BachtrackBach: St Matthew PassionOne of the highlights of Auckland's musical life these last few years has been the semi-regular appearances…Concert Review
- Radio New ZealandBach: St Matthew PassionThe APO has already given us a concert opera this year with Verdi’s Aida but last night’s performance of…Concert Review
- The StageRoberts and Jóhannsson: Now the HeroA hundred years since the end of World War One, the war supposedly to end all wars, armed conflicts around…Concert Review
- The GuardianRoberts and Jóhannsson: Now the HeroRemembrance is not enough.” These stark words, hurled through a megaphone from a bridge that looks out over…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazinePark: Choral WorksTwenty-something composer Owain Park is very much the rising star on the British choral scene, carving out a…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazinePark: Choral WorksCD OF THE MONTH (Choral and Song)CD Review
- Music Web InternationalPark: Choral WorksOwain Park weaves new with old, glory with grace, and might with mysticism in this terrific collection of…CD Review
- classicalsource.comPark: Choral WorksThis Hyperion release of mostly a cappella settings reports a confident and highly gifted composer, Owain…CD Review
- LimelightPark: Choral WorksMasterworks of a rising star sung by a masterly choir Owain Park has not only accompanied and sung in the…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalBach: Mass in B minorAs I listened to this excellent new recording of the B minor Mass I found myself reflecting on the progress…CD Review
- Classicstoday.comBach: Mass in B minorAll’s well, everything precisely where it should be with this new Bach B minor Mass, albeit from a source not…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesBach: Mass in B minorScholarly scruples about Bach’s recycling of material from earlier works, even secular cantatas, can never…CD Review
- Allmusic.comBach: Mass in B minorThe Bach Mass in B minor, BWV 232, assembled from bits and pieces over some years, coheres in its final form…CD Review
- GramophoneBach: Mass in B minorWhen Jonathan Freeman-Attwood reviewed the rather good B minor Mass from Jonathan Cohen and Arcangelo…CD Review
2017
- GramophoneStanford: Choral MusicGRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE JULY 2017Concert Review
- Opus KlassiekStanford: Choral MusicDe Engelsen zorgen ook postuum goed voor hun componisten, waarin de verschillende Engelse labels zich niet…Concert Review
- BBC Radio 3Stanford: Choral MusicA thrilling performance from The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge...the sheer impact of the voices in the…Concert Review
- Audiophile AuditionStanford: Choral MusicWhat a nice CD from Hyperion, celebrating the music of Sir Charles Villiers Stanford. Stanford was arguably…Concert Review
- ResMusicaStanford: Choral MusicLa tradition chorale en Angleterre est fort ancienne et l’excellence des chœurs issus de ses collèges n’est…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalBach: St John PassionAn account of the St John Passion that brought home the true meaning of EasterConcert Review
- Early Music TodayChristmas Festival 2016Choral director Stephen Layton is contemplating the upcoming St John's Smith Square Christmas Festival from…Feature Interview
2016
- Music OMHBach: B minor MassBach referred to the ‘Kyrie’ and ‘Gloria’ of his Mass in B minor as “an insignificant example of my musical…Concert Review
- The AgeAustralia TourClassical Year in Review: Passion, high-quality performances in superior effortsConcert Review
- Limelight MagazineHowells - Collegium RegaleHowells still seems a bit of a rarity on disc. How did you first encounter him?Exclusive Interview
- The Seattle TimesHandel: MessiahHallelujah! A bright, brilliant ‘Messiah’ at Seattle Symphony What a difference a conductor makes. The…Concert Review
- The Adelaide AdvertiserHandel: MessiahAs composers go, Handel is a bit like Bach in that it is absolutely essential for any serious exponent of his…Concert Review
- Newcastle HeraldAustralia TourMuch of choral music is directed to the heavens, inspiring if not a belief in God then certainly a…Concert Review
- The West AustralianAustralia Tour★★★★ It doesn’t get much better than this: one of the world’s finest choirs showcasing their considerable…Concert Review
- The AustralianAustralia TourIt’s the physical separation between the singers that you notice first when the Choir of Trinity College…Concert Review
- The Daily TelegraphAustralia TourThe scholar choristers of Trinity College Cambridge are the brainiest singers you’re likely to hear, and it…Concert Review
- The Adelaide AdvertiserAustralia TourIt was as audacious as they go. What encore could possibly follow the stunningly ecstatic final bars of…Concert Review
- Performing Arts HubAustralia Tour★★★★ As optional extras to its concert seasons of chamber music, Musica Viva Australia has for decades past…Concert Review
- The AgeAustralia Tour★★★★½ As on their 2010 Musica Viva tour, this excellent choral body began with Arvo Pärt's Bogoróditse…Concert Review
- LimelightAustralia Tour★★★★★ "A spiritually profound, sensuously crafted performance from the Rolls-Royce of choirs" At the first…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineHowells: Collegium RegaleThose who have sung Howells's church music know how fluidly he matches it with text, how closely the cadences…CD Review
- Choir and OrganHowells: Collegium RegaleThis splendid disc brings together all of the Howells's 'Collegium Regale' music for the Morning and Evening…CD Review
- EuropadiscHowells: Collegium RegaleHerbert Howells may have been an Oxford man by education, but he came to forge his closest links with the…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalHowells: Collegium RegaleThis is the second Howells disc that Stephen Layton and the Trinity College Choir have made for Hyperion and…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineHowells: Collegium RegaleHerbert Howells was arguably the most important composer of music for the Anglican church in the…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineHowells: Collegium RegaleIt was indeed fateful that Howells should have found himself in Cambridge during the Second World War in…CD Review
- The GuardianHowells: Collegium RegaleMuch as John Piper, Graham Sutherland and Geoffrey Clarke created a new aesthetic in 20th-century visual art…CD Review
- publikart.netBach: St John PassionLa Passion selon Saint Jean au Théâtre des Champs Elysées La Passion selon Saint Jean de Jean-Sébastien Bach…Concert Review
- Frankfurter Allgemeine ZeitungBach: St John PassionWitnesses of a trial An English guest performance: St John Passion in the Alte Oper Johann Sebastian Bach’s…Concert Review (translation)
- Frankfurter RundschauBach: St John PassionJesus as the ruler of his own fate Stephen Layton with a bravura performance of Bach's St John Passion at the…Concert Review (translation)
- Op-Online.deBach: St John PassionSt John Passion in the Alte Oper in Frankfurt - A British-style passion Frankfurt, They have long since…Concert Review (translation)
- Op-Online.deBach: St John PassionFrankfurt - Den lange in England wirkenden barocken Sachsen Georg Friedrich Händel haben sie längst national vereinnahmt. Und selbst bei der historischen Klangforschung sind die Briten vorn dabei. Von Klaus AckermannConcert Review
- Frankfurter RundschauBach: St John PassionJesus als Herrscher über sein Schicksal Stephen Layton mit einer bravourösen Aufführung von Bachs…Concert Review
- Frankfurter Allgemeine ZeitungBach: St John PassionZeugen einer Gerichtsverhandlung Gastspiel aus England: Johannes-Passion in der Alten OperConcert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalRachmaninoff: VespersWith his All-Night Vigil or Vespers setting (1915) Rachmaninov tapped so deeply and cogently into the…Concert Review
- Classical-music.comHandel: MessiahA first MessiahConcert Review
2015
- Music OMHHandel: Messiah“The best bleedin’ Messiah in the country” was Heddle Nash’s self-assessment, and the same phrase is right…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalHandel: MessiahThis performance was the last in the St John’s 13 day-long 30th Christmas Festival. As in the case of the…Concert Review
- The Evening StandardBach: B minor MassThe Choir of Trinity College Cambridge is no ordinary Oxbridge choir. Fielding no fewer than 30 choral…Concert Review
- Music OMHBach: B minor MassThis is the 30th Christmas Festival at St John’s, and it has been an exceptional one in terms of variety of…Concert Review
- Music Web InternationalVarious: Yulefest!A couple of themes run through this attractive Christmas music compilation. One is the presence of a number…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphVarious: Yulefest!The Best Classical CDs for ChristmasCD Review
- DiapasonVarious: Yulefest!Le Chœur du Trinity College de Cambridge est l'un de ces ensembles d'étudiants si versatile qu'il parvient à…CD Review
- Los Angeles TimesVarious: Yulefest!Sublime singing of the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, under the direction of Stephen Layton, marks the a…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineVarious: Yulefest!Performance Recording Since going to Trinity College, Cambridge nine years ago conductor Stephen Layton has…CD Review
- Sinfini MusicVarious: American PolyphonyCenturies of puritanical preaching and religious dogma have worked to supress the eternal human drive to draw…CD Review
- The New Zealand HeraldVarious: American Polyphony5 Stars Some Aucklanders have had the pleasure of experiencing the artistry of Stephen Layton in person when…CD Review
- The Financial TimesVarious: American PolyphonyTo mark Independence Day here is a disc that makes the mid-20th century in the US seem a pinnacle of choral…CD Review
- MusicWeb InternationalVarious: American PolyphonyStephen Layton has come up with a most attractive programme of a cappella choral pieces by twentieth century…CD Review
- Classical EarLeighton: Crucifxus pro nobisWakefield-born Kenneth Leighton (1929-88) left us a wonderful legacy of church music (as a boy he sang in his…CD Review
- Presto ClassicalVarious: American PolyphonyWith the USA having just celebrated Independence Day, it seems fitting that this week it should be American…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineVarious: American PolyphonyIncandescent choral glory - Polyphony is revelatory in American repertoire Performance: 5 stars Recording: 5…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineVarious: American PolyphonyStephen Layton tells Rebecca Franks how he came up with an all-American programme for his choir Polyphony…Q&A
- The Seattle TimesBaroque and Wine: SeattleDistinguished English conductor Stephen Layton led Seattle Symphony players and vocalists in a stellar…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalHaydn: CreationHaydn’s oratorio The Creation, presented here as the finale to the brief BBC season on the subject, was a…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineLeighton: Crucifxus pro nobisPerformance Recording The text of Kenneth Leighton's cantata Crucifixus pro nobis is the ecclesiastical…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineLeighton: Crucifxus pro nobisKenneth Leighton's remarkably consistent musical style means that his characteristic traits, such as…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalLeighton: Crucifxus pro nobis"Kenneth Leighton's music is at the heart of English Cathedral repertoire," so says the introduction to…CD Review
- Sinfini MusicEšenvalds - Northern LightsThere’s a perception that classical listeners have to choose between the credible and the enjoyable: liking…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionEšenvalds - Northern LightsLayton's Choir is brilliant, make no mistake; it would also be a lie to suggest that I did not get much…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineEšenvalds - Northern LightsOne of the chief pleasures of this CD is right at the beginning-the silvery duetting of Rachel Ambrose Evans…CD Review
- Reutlinger General-AnzeigerECLAT New Music FestivalConcert Review
- Stuttgarter ZeitungECLAT New Music FestivalConcert Review
- Stuttgarter NachrichtenECLAT New Music FestivalConcert Review
- Ludwigsburger KreiszeitungECLAT New Music FestivalConcert Review
- Latvians OnlineEšenvalds - Northern LightsLatvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds has not only become one of the most celebrated composers in Latvia, but his…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalEšenvalds - Northern LightsI first encountered the music of the Latvian composer, Ēriks Ešenvalds in 2011 when I reviewed a disc of his…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineEšenvalds - Northern LightsBorn in 1977, Latvian Ēriks Ešenvalds is principally known as a composer of choral music. This album…CD Review
- Classical Music SentinelEšenvalds - Northern LightsWhen I initially heard and reviewed the first recording completely dedicated to the music of Latvian composer…CD Review
- Allmusic.comEšenvalds - Northern LightsOne critic has dubbed the music of Latvian composer Eriks Esenvalds "relentless rapture," and it's true that…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesVarious: American PolyphonyThe peerless choir offer meticulously blended and shaped performances of 20th-century a cappella American…CD Review
- Choir and OrganEšenvalds - Northern LightsLatvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds goes from strength to strength, if the evidence of this exemplary recording…CD Review
- The Northern EchoEšenvalds - Northern LightsThe Trinity College Choir Cambridge under the direction of Stephen Layton give superlative performances of…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineLeighton: Crucifxus pro nobisThe text of Kenneth Leighton's cantata Crucifixus pro nobis is the ecclesiastical equivalent of a snuff…CD Review
2014
- The Arts DeskBach: B minor MassWhile the embers of the concert year are dying out around the country, you can be sure of a great blaze-up at…Concert Review
- The IndependentBach: B minor MassBach has bite under Layton's masterly direction *Concert Review
- Music OMHHandel: MessiahThis was the 20th anniversary of the now-legendary performances of Messiah by Polyphony and Stephen Layton at…Concert Review
- Northern Ireland CultureHandel: MessiahThis year’s performance of Handel’s Messiah in the Waterfront Hall in Belfast takes place just over two…Concert Review
- HBL.fiArvo Pärt: Choral MusicKonsumeras med måtta. Det är mitt råd beträffande den här skivan. Arvo Pärt, 79, letade efter en egen…CD Review
- Choir and OrganArvo Pärt: Choral MusicThe ever-excellent Polyphony and Stephen Layton have put together a very special disc of music by Pärt in…CD Review
- klassik.comArvo Pärt: Choral WorksEin über fünfzig Jahre ausgreifendes Panorama mit Chormusik des Esten Arvo Pärt: Stephen Layton und sein Ensemble Polyphony erweisen sich als kongeniale Interpreten.CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionArvo Pärt: Choral WorksPolyphony has a long association with Arvo Part’s music, including a 2003 Gramophone Award for Triodion and…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineArvo Pärt: Choral WorksGramophone Editor's Choice - October 2014CD Review
- The Arts DeskCity of London Sinfonia: Shakespeare - Let Music SoundStratford-upon-Avon calling. The City of London Sinfonia has embarked on a series of three Bard-based October…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineJenkins: MotetsWhen John Rutter composed The Shepherd’s Pipe Carol for the second volume of Carols for Choirs back in 1967…CD Review
- The New Zealand HeraldAuckland Philharmonia: St John PassionStephen Layton was responsible for the memorable Mass in B minor, presented by Auckland Philharmonia…Concert Review
- BachtrackAuckland Philharmonia: St John PassionThe St John Passion was originally composed for the Good Friday service in Leipzig in 1724, and Stephen…Concert Review
- Choir and OrganArvo Pärt: Choral WorksCD Review
- NPR Classical Music BlogArvo Pärt: The Silence and Awe of Arvo Pärt“Silence is like fertile soil, which, as it were, awaits our creative act, our seed" Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt is…Feature
- Russian Art and CultureHolst Singers: Radiant LightThe Holst Singers are one of Britain’s foremost choirs, having garnered many glowing reviews from the likes…Concert Review
- BachtrackHolst Singers: Radiant LightThe Temple Music series held in the beautiful Temple Church features some star studded early evening recitals…Concert Review
- Classic FMJenkins: MotetsKarl Jenkins' greatest music reinterpreted for a capella choir: John Suchet's Album of the Week 5 May 2014…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineTavener: The Veil of the TempleCD Review
- LimelightBach: Christmas OratorioA truly festive account of Bach's colourful Christmas masterpiece. Colourful, inventive and utterly…CD Review
2013
- The TelegraphBach: Christmas OratorioBach’s Christmas Oratorio begins and ends in a great shout of joy, with ringing D major trumpets and a great…Concert Review
- OMH MusicBach: Christmas OratorioIt is a very special experience to hear Bach’s Christmas Oratorio in St John’s, Smith Square, since Bach’s…Concert Review
- The Arts DeskBach: Christmas OratorioNot every Yuletide fixture need be commercial and routine. Certainly St John’s annual Christmas Festival…Concert Review
- Planet HugillBach: Christmas OratorioAs part of the Christmas Festival at St John's Smith Square, the choir of Trinity College, Cambridge, and the…Concert Review
- The Arts DeskBach: Christmas OratorioA flurry of timpani and a pair of trilling flutes kick things off nicely. The OAE's oboes and trumpets are…CD Review
- The Mail on SundayBach: Christmas OratorioDisc of the Week For me nothing is more majestic, or better conveys the sheer joy of Christmas, than the…CD Review
- Sinfini MusicBach: Christmas OratorioBach’s Christmas Oratorio started life as a set of related cantatas, conceived for performance on the six…CD Review
- Hi-Fi CriticBach: Christmas OratorioBrazen and celebratory, the opening of J S Bach’s Christmas Oratorio blazes into life in a Cambridge chapel…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineBach: Christmas OratorioThe superb quartet of soloists yields not a demisemiquaver to the competition. In a work incontestably…CD Review
- Presto ClassicalBach: Christmas OratorioChristmas Oratorios from Bach, Berlioz and Britten As it’s only just December, I feel it’s a little early for…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesBach: Christmas OratorioALBUM OF THE WEEK Although Bach called these six yuletide cantatas, composed in 1734, an oratorio, he…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBach: Christmas OratorioALBUM OF THE WEEK Music seems to course through the very veins of the singers and players on this Bach…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHandel: MessiahBuilding a Library: Handel Messiah THE BEST RECORDING: STEPHEN LAYTON Stephen Layton's musicians bring an…CD Review
- Voix des ArtsBach: Christmas OratorioFew compilations of repurposed music have been as embraced by musicians and listeners as Johann Sebastian…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalBach: Christmas OratorioEarlier this year I was very taken with Stephen Layton’s recording of Bach’s St John Passion (review). That…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineBach: Christmas OratorioDavid Mellor's Album of the Week Christmas has come early. Or at least, Bach's Christmas Oratorio has come…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionBach: Christmas OratorioThe Bach is a given-one of the most joyous works he ever wrote, it is a bit unusual in that it was not given…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8Acis and Galatea might be the most popular of the works Handel composed for James Brydges and his ambitiously…CD Review
- International Record ReviewHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8This second volume in Stephen Layton's and the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge's survey of Handel's…CD Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalCheltenham Festival 2013: Gloucester CathedralEvening of French Music Raises the Temperature in GloucesterConcert Review
- Rems-ZeitungGermany TourThe Choir of Trinity College Cambridge begeisterte Als nach dem Konzert an Sir John Tavener der Preis der…Concert Review
- Frankfurter Neue PresseGermany TourZart und anmutig wie der Gesang von Engeln Der „Trinity College Choir“ aus dem englischen Cambridge gastierte…Concert Review
- Badische-ZeitungGermany TourSee English below Ein großer Hörgenuss, der die Perfektion erahnen last Der "Choir of Trinity College…Concert Review
- Rems-ZeitungGermany TourThe Choir of Trinity College Cambridge begeisterte Als nach dem Konzert an Sir John Tavener der Preis der…Concert Review
- The Irish TimesHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos. 5a, 6a, & 8This is Stephen Layton's second disc devoted to the anthems Handel wrote for the Duke of Chandos, on terms…CD Review
- sinfinimusic.comHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8Handel flourished during his early years in England under the care of several super-rich patrons. James…CD Review
- GramophoneHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8'Three cheers for three more anthems for the Duke of Chandos to complement the same already available from…CD Review
- Early Music ReviewBach: St John PassionStephen Layton directs this intense, dramatic reading with intelligence and integrity, ably assisted by an…CD Review
- The Dominion PostBach: St John Passion'There have been many fine recordings of this work … but this is the equal of anything I have heard. Lead by…CD Review
- International Record ReviewBach: St John PassionA very welcome new recording … Stephen Layton presents an intelligently perceptive performance, beautifully…CD Review
- The GuardianHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8Good conductors will tell a choir that the words are just as important as the music; there's no point in…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 5a, 6a & 8I suggested that the first installment in this series "could be a landmark recording". Now, four years later…CD Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalCheltenham Festival 2013: Cheltenham College ChapelVirtuoso Display by Choir of Trinity College Cambridge Less than fourteen hours after taking part in fine…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalCheltenham Festival 2013Virtuoso Display by Choir of Trinity College CambridgeConcert Review
- The GuardianCheltenham Festival 2013: FinaleProviding companion pieces to some of Benjamin Britten's core works has been the challenge for many composers…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineCheltenham Festival 2013: Cheltenham College ChapelLarge, wealthy and just that little bit smug, Trinity is, along with St John's, the college that other…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalFauré: RequiemEvening of French Music Raises the Temperature in Gloucester On the evening of what was the hottest day so…Concert Review
- Audiophile AuditionBach: St John PassionTo recap: there are five extent “versions” of Bach’s St. John Passion. I say this because today’s listening…CD Review
- The ObserverHandel: JoshuaNot short on action, the Old Testament book of Joshua charts the entry of the Israelites into the Promised…Concert Review
- The Financial TimesHandel: JoshuaThe Star of David is everywhere, as a symbol of Jewish unity. The senior Israelite wears a kippah, denoting…Concert Review
- Bachtrack.comHandel: JoshuaIn spite of the fact that a Handel oratorio, however renowned, provides limited opportunities for staging…Concert Review
- Classical Source.comPoulenc: Paradise and PurgatoryThe City of London Sinfonia festival devoted to the music of Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) ended in…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineBach: St John PassionStephen Layton’s outstanding new St John is about as state-of-the-art a Bach Passion recording as you’ll…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBach: St John PassionFor many, the story of Christ’s arrest, trial and Crucifixion finds its perfect musical incarnation in Bach’s…Concert Review
- SINFINIMUSIC.comBach: St John Passionsinfinimusic.com Andrew Stewart listens to Stephen Layton and Polyphony's recording of Bach's St John Passion…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalBach: St John PassionBach : St John Passion - Music Web International Stephen Layton and Polyphony perform the St. John Passion…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBach: St John Passion5 Stars On Good Friday at London’s St John’s Smith Square, Stephen Layton will conduct Polyphony and the…CD Review
- The ObserverBach: St John PassionConductor Stephen Layton, top soloists, the expert choir of Polyphony and the incomparable Orchestra of the…CD Review
- Presto ClassicalBach: St John PassionI seem to spend a lot of time in these newsletters enthusing about new discoveries, revived rarities or fresh…CD Review
2012
- Time Out Hong KongCity Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong: Mozart RequiemYou’ve got to hand it to Die Konzertisten: getting the founder of renowned choral group Polyphony to head up…Concert Review
- The Arts DeskChristmas Festival 2012Messiahs of all kinds multiply at this time of year: the meek and the threadbare as well as the proud and…Concert Review
- The New Zealand HeraldBach: B minor MassJudging by the near-capacity audience for Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's performance on Thursday of Bach's…Concert Review
- bachtrack.comBach: B minor MassThe Mass in B minor was completed in 1749, the year before Bach’s death. Much of the work consists of music…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineHowells: Requiem & other works, Gramophone AwardEven by the exalted standards of previous offerings from Stephen Layton and his gifted Trinity College…CD Review
- The Mail on SundayBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & Saint Nicolas - The Mail on Sunday My Christmas Album of the Year is yet…CD Review
- The Arts DeskBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St Nicolas2013 will be Britten’s centenary, so brace yourself for an onslaught of new and reissued recordings over the…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasA Ceremony of Carols is most frequently heard sung by boy trebles, there is also an SATB arrangement by…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasWith this ideal coupling, Stephen Layton and his choral forces are getting in early with Christmas and…CD Review
- The Financial TimesBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasBritten's joyous cycle of nine carols is so closely associated with boys' voices that it comes as a surprise…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasAlthough we tend to associate Britten's A Ceremony of Carols with the timbre of boy trebles, it was…CD Review
- Avvenire.itBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & Saint Nicolas - avvenire.it Compie settant'anni e non li dimostra A Ceremony…CD Review
- WQXR.orgBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasMusic Album of the Week Unlike many of his contemporaries and forbears in the classical music world, Benjamin…CD Review
- Classical SourceBach: St John PassionIt is a perilously short fall from the grace of tradition to the blight of routine, and it would be…Concert Review
- The GuardianBach: St John PassionPolyphony's Good Friday performance of Bach's St John Passion has become an annual fixture, but there was no…Concert Review
- The ObserverBach: St John PassionStephen Layton has forged his own, near folkloric tradition by conducting his elite choir, Polyphony, in…Concert Review
- Classical Music SentinelHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksI may not always like the music, but never has a recording of choral music conducted by Stephen Layton failed…CD Review
- Choir and Organ MagazineHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksThis is a fine programme for Howells fans, eschewing the 'Coll. Reg.' canticles and the organ works, and…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksWill only male choirs do for Howells's sacred music? So previous commentators have insisted, though only the…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksIn a work intended to console, it's important that the actual sound the choir makes is warmly consoling. It…CD Review
- The Buffalo NewsHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksThe Choir of Trinity College, a group going back to the 14th century, brings a luminous, beautifully balanced…CD Review
- The Mail on SundayHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksMy Best Choral CD is from Hyperion and showcases music by the still underrated Herbert howells. Stephen…CD Review
- The GuardianHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksThe death from polio in 1935 of Herbert Howells' nine-year-old son Michael left a permanent mark on his…CD Review
- blog.codaex.deHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksDer englische Komponist Herbert Howells (1892-1983) war eine überaus interessante Persönlichkeit in der…CD Review
- BBC MusicHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksHerbert Howells' Requiem must be one of the most beautiful and searingly moving works in the entire English…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazinePoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalNo one is pretending Poulenc's melodies and instrumental music are without their performing problems. But…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalPoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalIt was the critic Claude Rostand, in 1950, who first adopted the phrase “moine ou voyou” to describe Francis…CD Review
- Classical MusicPoulenc: Half Monk - Half Rascal"Half monk, half rascal, they called him" , Poulenc's deep religous conviction shining through just as…CD Review
- Fanfare USAPoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalThe title of this album, Half Monk, Half Rascal -originally coined as “half monk, half thug” by critic Claude…CD Review
- Choir and Organ MagazinePoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalThe old rouge would have kissed them all, the men twice over. Poulenc may have created am impression of…CD Review
- The AgeBach: St John PassionA TIMELY Lenten celebration, this performance of the shorter of Bach's two great Passion settings impressed…Concert Review
- The Sydney Morning HeraldBach: St John PassionA TIMELY Lenten celebration, this performance of the shorter of Bach's two great Passion settings impressed…Concert Review
- Seen and Heard InternationalVarious: Conquering the AntarcticAs part of its 40th anniversary season the City of London Sinfonia is touring this programme, which marks the…Concert Review
- South Wales AngusVarious: Conquering the AntarcticOne can never be sure of the right response to Scott's doomed Antarctic expedition, if only because the…Concert Review
- The GuardianVarious: Conquering the AntarcticThe City of London Sinfonia's commemoration of the centenary of Robert Scott's ill-fated Antarctic…Concert Review
- Birmingham Express & StarVarious: Conquering the AntarcticWhat superb timing, a concert celebrating a heroic struggle against the deep freeze of the Antarctic was…Concert Review
- The TimesVarious: Conquering the AntarcticIf you want to put Britain’s current cold snap into perspective, you couldn’t do better than attend this…Concert Review
- dailyclassicalmusic.comPoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalI was completely befuddled by the first words on the booklet cover: 'Half Monk' and 'Half Rascal'. Initially…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksI’d scarcely sent off my review of the fine recording of the Howells Requiem by Paul McCreesh than this new…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasAs the Britten centenary looms into view, it is good to be able to offer an enthusiastic welcome to this…CD Review
- theartsdesk.comPoulenc: Half Monk - Half Rascal“A critic said that there is both a monk and a street urchin in me. That is an accurate description of my…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphHowells: Requiem & Other Choral WorksHerbert Howells (1892-1983) perfectly understood the way that liturgical music could stir the spirits. His…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazinePoulenc: Half Monk - Half RascalLayton and the DNVE follow Praulins with PoulencCD Review
2011
- American Record GuideVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsOver an hour's worth of American music recorded by a British choir and none of it was composed by Eric…CD Review
- ClassicalSource.comHandel: MessiahOxygen was at a premium on a wet, unseasonably warm December evening, but Polyphony and the Academy of…Concert Review
- The Daily TelegraphChristmas Festival 2011I don't regard myself as more than averagely sentimental and there isn't too much music that reduces me to…Concert Review
- ClassicalSource.comChristmas Festival 2011An aspiration of many years’ standing has been to listen to J. S. Bach’s cantatas following the liturgical…Concert Review
- The Daily TelegraphVarious: Christmas FestivalI don't regard myself as more than averagely sentimental and there isn't too much music that reduces me to…Concert Review
- The TimesBritten: A Ceremony of Carols & St NicolasStephen Layton transformed this from an average, middle-class seasonal celebration into a magnificent musical…Concert Review
- San Francisco Classical VoiceVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsThe U.S. and Canada may be secular nations, but you’d never know it from Beyond All Mortal Dreams: American A…CD Review
- German ReviewPraulins: The Nightingale*German Text follows below the English*CD Review
- SA-CD.netPraulins: The NightingaleDanish recorder virtuoso Michala Petri had collaborated with a choir several times during her career, but she…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalPraulins: The NightingaleThese are all world premiere recordings and feature the combination of Michala Petri’s flute, the Danish…CD Review
- Sächsische ZeitungPraulins: The NightingaleGrenzlos nah am Geschehen Für die dänische Flötistin Michala Petri scheint nichts unm¨glich. Jetz singt sie…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazinePraulins: The NightingaleLayton in Denmark for another Baltic VoyageCD Review
- Fanfare USAPraulins: The NightingaleWould that all “concept albums,” particularly those of new music, come out as well as this. Recorder player…CD Review
- ClassicalSource.comSchnittke: Choir Concerto; MinnesangI well remember the first time I heard a piece of Schnittke’s, as a student at the Huddersfield Festival, the…CD Review
- Interlude.hkVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsSome of the best choral discs, in my mind, have come from British choirs exploring repertoire outside of the…CD Review
- wqxr.orgVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsIs there a contemporary American choral music sound? A growing number of American composers have banded…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsIf this is a representative cross-section of unaccompanied American choral music since the Second World War…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsAll but two of the composers represented here are still alive, so the word “contemporary” might easily have…CD Review
- savd.com.auVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2In 1997, the Holst Singers and Stephen Layton produced a disc that immediately became a cult classic and a…CD Review
- The GuardianCelebration of Nicholas MawIt is often said of Nicholas Maw, who died in 2009, that he was born at the wrong time. The lyrical…Concert Review
- The TimesCelebration of Nicholas MawA rhapsodic critic once said: “For generations people will be buying tickets to hear his music”. It’s a…Concert Review
- Icareifyoulisten.comCelebration of Nicholas MawThe British composer Nicholas Maw (1935-2009) received mixed reception during his life; dubbed a…Concert Review
- The TelegraphBBC Proms 2011Many years ago, in what might be seen as an extreme form of “authenticity”, I sang in a performance of…Concert Review
- The GuardianBBC Proms 2011Founded by the late Richard Hickox, the City of London Sinfonia reaches its 40th anniversary this year. One…Concert Review
- The ObserverBBC Proms 2011Another new cantata with two singers, a tenor (Ian Bostridge) and a baritone (Roderick Williams), ventured…Concert Review
- The Financial TimesBBC Proms 2011The Prom the night before brought another major premiere (though not a BBC commission). This was Colin…Concert Review
- The New StatesmanBBC Proms 2011Musical memorials take many forms, as Sunday night's Prom elegantly demonstrated. A concert dedicated to…Concert Review
- The Evening StandardBBC Proms 2011It was Richard Hickox who, with a characteristically ebullient phone call in 2008, just three days before his…Concert Review
- Limelight: The Classical Music & Arts Website; ABC Classic FMVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2This release focuses on Russian composers from the early 20th-century, including some émigré composers, who…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsThis album is a dual celebration of sorts; American choral music coming into its own as a distinct and…CD Review
- classicstoday.comVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsStephen Layton and the Trinity College Choir unearth choral works of rare beauty. First, a health warning: it…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsStephen Layton and the Trinity College Choir unearth choral works of rare beauty. First, a health warning: it…CD Review
- mattnielsen.comVarious: Beyond All Mortal DreamsWhen I first heard that Trinity College was putting out a recording of all American music I started…CD Review
- International Record ReviewEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksWithin seconds I knew I was going to adore this CD and the music of Eriks Ešenvalds … This is a performance…CD Review
- klassiekezaken.nlEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksDe Letse componist Eriks Ešenvalds speelt een wonderlijk spel met de beleving van gezongen tekst. Er is volop…CD Review
- Entartete MusikEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksPolyphony and Hyperion Records have done more to broaden our choral taste than any other choir or record…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksEriks Esenvalds (b. 1977) is a Latvian composer who, according to the notes, comes from a new Latvia free of…CD Review
- dailyclassicalmusic.comEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral Works'When composing a work, I give myself to the temptation of the creative work -- a journey, whose twisting…CD Review
- American Record GuideEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksHyperion has done it again, with this stunning album of mostly sacred choral works by the younger-generation…CD Review
- Limelight, ABC Classic FMEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksA "singing revolution" of vocal magic from Polyphony, Stephen Layton and Latvian composer Eriks Esenvalds…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksEšenvalds responds to the purpose of the words he sets, occupying similar choral territory to the likes of…CD Review
- The Arts DeskPraulins: The NightingaleYou don’t find many discs of music for recorder and a capella voices. Veteran Danish virtuoso Michala Petri…CD Review
- opusklassiek.nlEsenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksDe revolutie van 1991 in Letland is de geschiedenis ingegaan als de ‘zingende revolutie’. Duizenden Letten…CD Review
- blog.codaex.deEšenvalds: Passion and Resurrection & Other Choral WorksIn den drei Republiken des Baltikum gab es immer schon eine ausgeprägt hochklassige und vielfältige…CD Review
2010
- Audiophile AuditionVarious: Baltic ExchangeHyperion continues to astound by coming up with unknown and eminently-listenable music from various parts of…CD Review
- Skånska DagbladetDanish National Vocal EnsembleKörsång när den är som allra bästConcert Review
- The GuardianBach: St John PassionThe last-minute withdrawal of the tenor Evangelist from a performance of Bach's St John Passion would…Concert Review
- The TabEšenvalds: Passion & ResurrectionEriks Esenvalds clearly felt like a million dollars at the end of Thursday's performance of his oratorio…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalVarious: Baltic ExchangeBaltic Exchange is an apt title for a selection of choral works by four Baltic composers sung by a British…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineVarious: Baltic ExchangeA fascinating collection of choral works by composers from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, centring on a Mass…CD Review
- Classical Music MagazineVarious: Baltic ExchangeLayton delves into Baltic melting pot A regular visitor since the lifting of the iron curtain, Stephen Latyon…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2'The programme is scrupulously prepared, with excellent pronunciation, idiomatic timbres anda fine fusion of…CD Review
- The OldieBriggs: Mass for Notre DameOur own great latter-day improviser, a man who in his fantasy organ world David Hyde Pierce would probably…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2I can’t believe that it’s been 13 years since Ikon came out by these same forces. At the time I considered it…CD Review
- The TelegraphVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2Performing with insight and commendable Russian sonority, the Holst Singers have cast their net wide in this…CD Review
- International Record ReviewVarious: Ikon, Vol. 2The remarkable performances of the Holst Singers, securely balanced on the tightrope between pianissimo…CD Review
- The AustralianAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirThe cacophony of Canberra politics temporarily gave way on Wednesday night to sounds far more harmonious. The…Concert Review
- The Age, MelbourneAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirVisitors for Musica Viva representing the Oxbridge and wider British cathedral choral traditions, the Choir…Concert Review
- The Manly DailyAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirIt was obvious from the opening short but lovely Arvo Part Slavonic Ave Maria, which quickly melded into an…Concert Review
- The Adelaide AdvertiserAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirFlawless in every aspect of choral technique and interpretation, the 30 undergraduates of the college created…Concert Review
- West AustralianAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirTickets to the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre have sold out and…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineVarious: Baltic ExchangeNo longer the preserve of their own choirs, the choral music of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania now flows in…CD Review
- The Sydney Morning HeraldAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirSoundtrack to a revolution shows rare beauty On the night of June 10, 1988, more than 300,000 Estonians -…Concert Review
- North Shore TimesAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirExtraordinary ensemble cohesion was the hallmark of the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge during its concert…Concert Review
- The Hobart MercuryAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirTrinity College Choir began its first tour of Australia in Hobart. The program order emphasized harmonic and…Concert Review
- The AustralianAustralia Tour: Trinity College ChoirChoral scholars offer a masterclass in sacred music On a chilly evening in Hobart, the Choir of Trinity…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineBriggs: Mass for Notre DameEditor's Choice These works give the lie to the old adage that the natural enemy of the Brits is the French…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineBriggs: Mass for Notre DameThis is a mass with a difference: not only does it have four interpolated organ improvisations as part and…CD Review
- International Record ReviewBriggs: Mass for Notre DameThere's only one word for this. Spectacular. Let's start with the recording. Gloucester Cathedral is an…CD Review
- Choir and OrganBriggs: Mass for Notre DameDavid Briggs has spent much time and persistent care in transcribing improvisations by Pierre Ccochereau…CD Review
- Classical Music SentinelBriggs: Mass for Notre DameAll of you who have become convinced that any new music being written these days is only going to be either…CD Review
- The Oxford TimesBach: MotetsThe London-based Holst Singers have been called “one of Britain’s foremost choirs”, and after hearing them at…Concert Review
- Opera News NYCHandel: MessiahAny Handel oratorio needs to be an elastic entity in our day, just as it was in Handel’s. Considering the…CD Recording
- Classics Today.comVarious: Baltic ExchangeThis is a major release that choral music fans will not want to miss. Here is a program of modern works (most…CD Review
- Odense Symphony OrchestraBach: St John PassionStunning Easter experienceConcert Review
- The Irish TimesVarious: Baltic ExchangeThink of Baltic choral music and you probably think of something by Arvo Pärt. This new CD leaves him aside…CD Review
- The Philadelphia InquirerVarious: Baltic ExchangeEarly this year when the Philadelphia choir the Crossing unveiled great music by the little-known young…CD Review
- klassiekezaken.nlVarious: Baltic ExchangeDoor de bekendheid van hun koormuziek kan de indruk bestaan dat boven de Noordzee alleen Pärt en Rautavaara…CD Review
- The Arts DeskVarious: Baltic ExchangeA fascinating anthology of contemporary a capella vocal works from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the music…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalHandel: MessiahIn a sense this release brings my experience to date of Messiah on CD full circle. The very first Messiah…CD Review
2009
- performing.artshub.com.auHandel: MessiahI noticed in the program notes to the sold-out performance of Messiah last night that the first performance…Concert Review
- The Age, MelbourneHandel: MessiahAMONG several performances of Handel's timeless oratorio at this time of year, those offered by the Melbourne…CD Review
- The Sacred Arts, USALukaszewski: Via CrucisPawel Lukaszewski's Via Crucis presents us with a rare occurrence in the world of modern music: a prayerful…CD Review
- Kristeligt DagbladHandel: MessiahJulefryd med Stephen Layton Julen er traditionernes fest, og en af dem er at lægge øre til Händels oratorium…CD Review
- Brisbane CourierHandel: MessiahWhen British conductor Stephen Layton directs Handel's Messiah he goes for a close-knit ensemble, neat…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphHandel: MessiahPolyphony’s cultured, humane performances of Handel’s masterpiece have long been a pre-Christmas fixture at…CD Review
- ottosbaroquemusick.co.ukHandel: MessiahMake no mistake, this set is a bright star in a lighted firmament of existing Handel Messiahs. This newly…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalHandel: MessiahTHUMBS UP Choosing a version of Messiah used to be comparatively easy. If you wanted a big-scale performance…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineJackson: Not no faceless AngelContemporary choral works of a special beauty and appealCD Review
- Gramophone MagazineHandel: MessiahAn engaging and likeable Messiah from Layton and PolyphonyCD Review
- Hifi CriticHandel: MessiahAnother Christmas-related work (even if its fame spread from the Dublin premiere at Eastertide), this…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesHandel: MessiahYou could argue that the radiant soprano Julia Doyle’s coloratura in Rejoice is a little effortful, that the…CD Review
- Voix des ArtsHandel: MessiahThe annual approach of Advent carries with it a certain dread for many musicians and music lovers for it is…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHandel: MessiahStephen Layton has conducted Messiahs sporting choirs mustering 18 to 2,000 singers (and orchestras ranging…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineHandel: MessiahChristmas wouldn't be Chrismtas without a Messiah release, and there are few finer exponents of this great…CD Review
- ClassicsToday.comHandel: MessiahPerformances of Messiah are never difficult to find, especially during the Christmas and Easter holiday…CD Review
- The Detroit NewsHandel: MessiahHere is one of the finest choral performances among the myriad recordings of "Messiah." The choristers glide…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionHandel: MessiahThis is a very personal, very intimate reading of Messiah. I was almost put off completely when the Overture…CD Review
- San Francisco Classical Voice.California Tour: Trinity College ChoirTrinity Goes to TinseltownConcert Review
- ClassicsToday.comJackson: Not no faceless AngelDon't be surprised if you have to stop and repeat the first two tracks of this musically compelling…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aarly in his London career Handel did not have a chance to write much massed vocal music. The operas were…CD Review
- musicalcriticism.comHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aThese three Anthems for Cannons or Chandos Anthems as they are more widely known, make for a glorious…CD Review
- Kristeligt DagbladHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aHändels kirkemusik "Chandos-hymnerne" består af 11 værker, som Händel komponerede fra august 1717 til…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphJackson: Not no faceless AngelGabriel Jackson is one of the growing number of composers riding the trend for ecstatic “spiritual” music…CD Review
- bbc.co.ukJackson: Not no faceless AngelGabriel Jackson seems ubiquitous at the moment. Last year his magnificent 40-part motet, Sanctum est verum…CD Review
- The ObserverJackson: Not no faceless AngelStephen Layton's apparently ceaseless offerings for Hyperion continue with this disc of contemplative pieces…CD Review
- MusicalCriticism.comJackson: Not no faceless AngelStephen Layton and his choir Polyphony have been performing and recording new choral works for several years…CD Review
- fonoforumHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aCD Review
- Music Web InternationalLukaszewski: Via CrucisHyperion have just released what I take to be the label’s second Łukaszewski disc. The Via Crucis (The Way of…CD Review
- ClassicalSource.comLukaszewski: Via CrucisFrom the arresting opening eruption, reminiscent of the famous ‘O fortuna’ from Carl Orff’s “Carmina burana”…CD Review
- allmusic.comHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aThere has never been a wealth of satisfying recordings of Handel’s "Chandos Anthems" available, so admirers…CD Review
- ClassicsToday.comHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aHandel was fundamentally a theatrical composer, in the sense that no matter what the genre, his guiding…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionJackson: Not no faceless AngelGabriel Jackson is a Bermuda-born Englander who descends from an Anglican clergyman and has himself an…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aSoloists and chorus alike excel in three of Handel's Chandos Anthems This contains three of the 11 so-called…CD Review
- The Age, Melbourne, AustraliaHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aThe recent slew of Handel releases in honour of the 250th anniversary of his death has reinforced the…CD Review
- The ObserverLukaszewski: Via CrucisThis devotional piece, which makes a noble addition to the music of Passiontide, could be seen as a…CD Review
- The Church TimesCambridge Cantat 800: Trinity College ChoirIn good voice after 800 years Garry Humphreys samples a festival of Cambridge choirs AS CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY…Concert Review
- Kristeligt DagbladLukaszewski: Via CrucisKorsvejen på nye toner De 15 stationer på Jesu korsvej er børnelærdom for de fleste, men det er især via den…CD Review
- The GuardianLukaszewski: Via CrucisThis devotional piece, which makes a noble addition to the music of Passiontide, could be seen as a…CD Review
- allmusic.comLukaszewski: Via CrucisPolish composer Pawel Lukaszewski has created a virtual anomaly: a contemporary, large-scale liturgical work…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineLukaszewski: Via CrucisPerformance Recording Thanks principally to Stephen Layton's advocacy, Pawel Lukaszewski's reputation is…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineJackson: Not no faceless AngelPerformance Recording Choral pieces which react in very specific ways to verbal and semantic nuance so easily…CD Review
- MinnesotaHandel: MessiahIf you only catch one oratorio this year, it will probably be Handel's "Messiah." It is, after all, a…Concert Review
- Music Web InternationalHandel: Messiah'The Polyphony Messiah' as I have taken to calling it, has been the final concert of the year for me for the…Concert Review
- The ObserverHandel: Chandos Anthems Nos 7, 9 & 11aStephen Layton is on a roll. After his triumphant recordings of Pawel Lukaszewski's choral works he returns…CD Review
- The IndependentHandel: MessiahThe first two days of January are a drab time in Scotland, after the junketing of Hogmanay. So there's a…Concert Review
- International Record ReviewLukaszewski: Via CrucisThis is a near-hour-long oratorio for three soloists, chorus and orchestra, and a narrator speaking in Latin…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineLukaszewski: Via CrucisMemorable and impressive moments - but no big sweep to these stations Hyperion's earlier disc of…CD Review
2008
- Classical Source.comTormis: Choral MusicThe folk-steeped a cappella choral music of Estonian Veljo Tormis (born 1930) is unlikely to set the world…CD Review
- The Irish IndependentBach: St John PassionConcert Review
- Gramophone MagazineHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- Gramophone MagazineLukaszewski: Choral MusicCD Review
- International Record ReviewLukaszewski: Choral MusicCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineLukaszewski: Choral MusicCD Review
- The Daily TelegraphLukaszewski: Choral MusicWhether with Polyphony or his Cambridge choir, Stephen Layton is constantly seeking out young or neglected…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionLukaszewski: Choral MusicHyperion offers us more of the unknown-but-worthy in this collection of sacred music by Polish composer…CD Review
- Musical Criticism.comLukaszewski: Choral MusicLukaszewski: Choral Music - Musical Criticism.com Stephen Layton adds yet another accomplished choral…CD Review
- Opera News, New YorkLukaszewski: Choral MusicThe young Polish composer Pawel Lukaszewski (b. 1968) has produced an impressive body of sacred choral music…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalLukaszewski: Choral MusicThe name of the Polish composer, Pavel Lukaszewski, may be new to some readers, as it was to me. He was born…CD Review
- Classical CDLinley: The Song of MosesAnother indispensable release in the English Orpheus series. The adventurous will find their curiosity amply…CD Review
- The Daily MailLinley: The Song of MosesLinley might well have been an English answer to Mozart, as this fine short oratorio shows.CD Review
- Fanfare USALukaszewski: Choral MusicStephen Layton is arguably the finest choral director working today in the U.K., a country seemingly bursting…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineLinley: The Song of MosesOne of the best finds yet in Hyperion’s English Orpheus seriesCD Review
- The Daily TelegraphHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- The TimesHandel: Dettingen Te DeumPrepare the sand buckets: the opening of Handel’s Dettingen Te Deum is incendiary. Trinity College Choir, the…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- The ObserverHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- Goldberg MagazineHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- The TimesTormis: Choral MusicStephen Layton and his superlative choir deliver an inspiring programme of a capella choral works by the…CD Review
- Classics Today.comTormis: Choral MusicIt's hard to imagine a composer "retiring" (as good an idea as it might be for some we can think of), but…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- International Record ReviewTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- Gramophone MagazinePoulenc: GloriaCD Review
- The ScotsmanTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- International Record ReviewPoulenc: GloriaPoulenc’s Catholic faith is much written about. The familiar contradictions in his character, the saint…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- The ObserverPoulenc: GloriaCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- The IndependentPoulenc: GloriaCD Review
- BBC Music MagazinePoulenc: Gloria'Stephen Layton's tight control of his forces, both choral and orchestral, lends impeccable ensemble and…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphPoulenc: GloriaThis is a real treat. Polyphony brings its characteristic incisiveness, precision and evenness of tone to…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalPoulenc: GloriaI was 13 or 14 years old when I first heard Poulenc’s Gloria. Not knowing anything by or about this composer…CD Review
- Musical Criticism.comPoulenc: GloriaAll things considered, Poulenc's Gloria has fared remarkably well on record, with recent versions by Jansons…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionPoulenc: GloriaFrancis Poulenc’s compositions were known for their color, wit and charm in the 1920s and 1930s. But up to…CD Review
- Musical Criticism.comTormis: Choral MusicVeljo Tormis is a composer who has had, until recently, relatively little recognition outside of his native…CD Review
- The TimesBach: St John PassionWhenever you're in the presence of the vocal ensemble Polyphony and their conductor Stephen Layton you begin…Concert Review
- The Irish ExaminerBach: St John PassionConcert Review
- BBC Music MagazinePoulenc: Gloria & MotetsIf audience participation muddies the join-in carols in the King’s disc, here’s something cool, poised and…CD Review
- Quobuz FranceLukaszewski: Choral MusicÀ première vue, le langage musical de Pawel Lukaszewski (né en 1958) présente d’évidentes affinités avec les…CD Review
- The Northern EchoLukaszewski: Choral MusicThe Choir of Trinity gives an immaculate performance of the seductively beautiful spiritual music of the…CD Review
- Classica Répertoire FranceHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- International Record ReviewHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
- American Record GuideTormis: Choral MusicCD Review
- Classica Répertoire FranceLukaszewski: Choral MusicLa découverte du mois L’univers de Pawel Lukaszewski déploie avec vigueur une richesse mélodique digne des…CD Review
- The Choir BBC Radio 3Lukaszewski: Choral Music“It’s a while since I’ve been able to catch up on some of the new CD releases to hit the shelves. There have…CD Review
- Classical Music.comLukaszewski: Choral MusicVocal effects including susurration are used by the 40-year-old Polish composer, but it is the emotionality…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazinePoulenc: GloriaCD Review
- The Sunday TimesHandel: Dettingen Te DeumCD Review
2007
- The TimesStephen Layton: InterviewStephen Layton interviewed by Richard Morrison (The Times, 16 November 2007) Master and Commander Every child…Interview
- BBC Music MagazineBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsCD Review
- Gramophone MagazineBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsCD Review
- The ObserverBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsBruckner lovers will be familiar with his motets, but may not know his glorious Mass No 2, which shares their…CD Review
- The ObserverBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsThis recording done in the resonant acoustic of Ely Cathedral has much to recommend it. Polyphony is one of…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsWith its refracted echoes of Palestrina, Bruckner's E minor Mass for choir and wind band stands as a sublime…CD Review
- Bay Area ReporterBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsHyperion is on a roll. Its superb new CD of Anton Bruckner's choral music, with the chorus Polyphony under…CD Review
- American Record GuideBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsI’ve had nothing but good things to say about Polyphony in works by Rutter, Whitacre, and maybe a few others…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsCD Review
- The Evening StandardBBC Proms: PolyphonyBlending is the secret of great choral singing. Stephen Layton's fine chamber choir, Polyphony, has mastered…Concert Review
- The Aberdeen Evening ExpressBBC Proms: PolyphonyAlabaster rendered in sound Stephen Layton's choir, Polyphony, have mastered their elusive art to perfection…Concert Review
- The Irish TimesIrish Chamber Choir: The Eternal FeminineTwentieth-century music may have a bad reputation, but a few extra chairs had to be put out at the National…Concert Review
- The IndependentAldeburgh Festival: PolyphonyMembers of the audience who arrived with cushions, to counter the unforgiving Maltings seats, must have felt…Concert Review
- Classics Today.comLauridsen: Nocturnes'This is great stuff, and it's given its best imaginable realization by Stephen Layton and his crack vocal…CD Review
- International Record ReviewLauridsen: Nocturnes'This is a spectacular cycle, graced by some sensational singing'CD Review
- Classical Source.comLauridsen: Nocturnes' … It is no surprise to learn of the composer’s devotion to music of both the Medieval and Renaissance…CD Review
- CNN NewsLauridsen: Nocturnes'You know something's up when two of the highest-profile and most honored American composers of serious…CD Review
- Classical.netLauridsen: Nocturnes'Morten Lauridsen (b. 1943) is at present considered to be the brightest star in the American choral…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionLauridsen: Nocturnes'...a disc that is filled with lovely music. Performances are excellent. Anyone who is interested in the best…CD Review
- HMV ChoiceLauridsen: Nocturnes'This recording is a fine example of Polyphony's exquisite range and Stephen Layton's skill in maintaining…CD Review
- Choir and OrganLauridsen: Nocturnes'Lauridsen's Mid-Winter Hymns unfolds as an astutely constructed choral symphony, with bouncy asymmetrical…CD Review
- The Manchester Evening NewsLauridsen: Nocturnes'There could be few choirs better equipped than Polyphony to bring his music to life, with their pure sound…CD Review
- The Daily ExpressLauridsen: Nocturnes'This is celestial and spine-tingling stuff. Contemporary choral music really doesn't come any better than…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphLauridsen: NocturnesIt is two years since Hyperion introduced the music of Morten Lauridsen to a wider audience and earned a…CD Review
- Fanfare USALauridsen: Nocturnes'Stephen Layton's splendiferous disc - the second of Lauridsen's music by these performers - should be on the…CD Review
- The Seattle TimesLauridsen: NocturnesThe Northwest-born composer Morten Lauridsen, renowned for his choral music, is the subject of this sumptuous…CD Review
- Stereophile USALauridsen: Nocturnes'I hold these truths to be self-evident: 1) Rainer Maria Rilke was a genius. 2) Morten Lauridsen is a genius…CD Review
- Slate Magazine USALauridsen: Nocturnes'Nocturnes creates a complex and strange beauty that doesn't sound like any other composer. Yet for all its…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalLauridsen: Nocturnes'This is a superb issue, with the engineers capturing the full sonority of the choir, orchestra and soloists…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineLauridsen: Nocturnes'This second, secular anthology is, if anything finer than its predecessor, elevated by the heavenly work of…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesBruckner: Mass in E minor & MotetsCD Review
2006
- The Eastern Daily PressAldeburgh Festival: PolyphonyThis world-renowned festival (happily on our doorstep) entered its second week with two exciting and…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineVillette: Choral Music'The Holst Singers create great clouds of texture, which surge, form, and melt before your ears … For a bag…CD Review
- Choir and OrganVillette: Choral Music'Whether chant-inspired, leaning towards a jazz idiom or chromaticism, the music is an unusual hybrid. The…CD Review
- International Record ReviewVillette: Choral Music'This is simply gorgeous music which has not so much moments of sublime beauty as virtually no passages which…CD Review
- Fanfare USAVillette: Choral Music'The Holst Singers’ blend, diction, intonation, and ensemble are uniformly up there with the best, as is the…CD Review
- American Record GuideVillette: Choral MusicThe Holst Singers - Stephen Layton's 'other' great choir - is every bit as skilled, sonorous and sensitive as…CD Review
- Choral Guide USAVillette: Choral Music'This recording offers the most comprehensive compilation of Villette’s choral music in print. Layton’s…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineVillette: Choral MusicVillette: Choral Music - Classic FM Magazine 'Shades of Messiaen, Duruflé, Gregorian chant and jazz tinge…CD Review
- Opera News, New YorkWhitacre: Cloudburst'Theirs [Polyphony] is the sort of virtuosity that calls no attention to itself but unfolds the music with a…CD Review
- CNN NewsWhitacre: Cloudburst'This one is in the We Told You So Department. American composer Eric Whitacre in his mid-30s, is, with the…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- Gramophone MagazineWhitacre: Cloudburst'This beautifully performed and recorded CD contains the bulk of Whitacre's choral canon and displays his…CD Review
- International Record ReviewWhitacre: Cloudburst'I would certainly urge anyone with a love of choral singing to buy this disc, not merely to sample this…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicWhitacre: Cloudburst'This is one of the most exciting discs to come onto the market... The whole experience is simply stunning…CD Review
- ClassicsTodayFrance.comWhitacre: Cloudburst'Il y a des disques dont on n'attend rien et qui nous donnent tous! Eric Whitacre se spécialise dans la…CD Review
- The TimesWhitacre: CloudburstCD Review
- The Rochester City NewsWhitacre: CloudburstFor months I've been driving around entranced, listening to Cloudburst, a stunning CD from British choral…CD Review
- Encore USAWhitacre: CloudburstA lifetime of listening to choral music had not prepared me for such lush harmonies-a cappella voices…CD Review
- BBC Radio 3Whitacre: CloudburstRight. Stop making the coffee: leave the washing for two minutes, muzzle your children, pull over to the side…CD Review
- The Chicago TribuneWhitacre: CloudburstComposer Eric Whitacre's new Hyperion release marks a most enjoyable collection of his works for (mostly)…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalWhitacre: CloudburstLast year Stephen Layton and Polyphony gave us a very fine CD devoted to the music of the American composer…CD Review
- ClassicsToday.comWhitacre: CloudburstYou hear about huge advance orders for the latest CD by the biggest, hottest pop superstar, or for the most…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineVillette: Choral Music'Shades of Messiaen, Duruflé, Gregorian chant and jazz tinge Villette's elegant, unpretentious motets…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicVillette: Choral Music'If I was going to choose a record company to commit Villette's music to disc, then Hyperion would be my…CD Review
- The Daily ExpressWhitacre: Cloudburst'Whitacre creates magical compositions that are stunning in their power. A beautiful album'CD Review
- Fanfare USAWhitacre: Cloudburst'Whitacre has experienced enormous success recently, writing choral and wind ensemble music. It's not hard to…CD Review
- Early Music ReviewHandel: MessiahThe conclusion of the St John’s, Smith Square Festival was the annual sell-out Messiah given by the…Concert Review
- The Independent on SundayWhitacre: Cloudburst'Ethereal and chillingly beautiful choral works - an intense and moving aural experience'CD Review
2005
- The IndependentBach: St John PassionThe choral director Stephen Layton's Good Friday performances with his chamber choir Polyphony, of Bach's St…Concert Review
- Early Music TodayHandel: MessiahConcert Review
- The IndependentSpitalfields Christmas FestivalThis Spitalfields Winter Festival concert paid homage to an established Christmas institution: the Christmas…Concert Review
- The Philadelphia InquirerHandel: MessiahStrong 'Messiah' conductor carries the night The season for Messiah envy, the ever-green variety, is upon us…Concert Review
- Choir and OrganMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the CrossThe two premiere recordings on this disc are the Te Deum and On the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin. The…CD Review
- The St Louis PostLauridsen: Lux aeterna"Lux aeterna" illuminates hope with choral music In the course of my work, I receive compact discs by the…CD Review
- The IndependentMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'James MacMillan's work is informed by his Catholic faith, but rarely has he communicated his spiritual…CD Review
- Music WeekMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the CrossIn an ideal world, Hyperion's August disc of the month would sell by the truckload. The sheer quality of…CD Review
- American Record GuideMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'If you've heard them and followed the laudatory press they've gotten worldwide, you already know that this…CD Review
- The TimesMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'MacMillan has a tremendous gift for making the simple resonate; the 2001 Te Deum, a first recording, shows…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the CrossBest buy (opera/vocal) September 2005 In the decade since Stephen Layton’s Polyphony made the premiere…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'an intense, deeply felt interpretation, full of beautiful and affecting singing, with all the elements -…CD Review
- The Birmingham PostMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'This stunning work, brilliantly performed by Stephen Layton's chamber choir Polyphony and the Britten…CD Review
- Chicago TribuneTavener: The Veil of the TempleYou've never heard anything quite like Sir John Tavener's "The Veil of the Temple." The work originated as an…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineLauridsen: Lux aeternaCD Review
- Classics Today.comLauridsen: Lux aeternaIt would be difficult today to be a choral singer and not be familiar with at least one or two works by…CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineLauridsen: Lux aeterna'Stephen Layton's feel for the inner line and structure melts the heart, as does the impeccable, unforced…CD Review
- International Record ReviewLauridsen: Lux aeternaConventional choral wisdom suggests that the American Morten Lauridsen is a one-work wonder and certainly O…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphLauridsen: Lux aeterna'The music has freshness and an affecting emotional pull to it that explains its popularity with singers and…CD Review
- Music WeekLauridsen: Lux aeterna'Above all, these performances by Stephen Layton's Polyphony are breathtakingly beautiful, powerfully…CD Review
- The ScotsmanLauridsen: Lux aeterna'Every one of the works on this mesmerising Hyperion release is deliciously lyrical and harmonically…CD Review
- The ObserverLauridsen: Lux aeterna'exquisitely sung by Polyphony with strong support from the Britten Sinfonia under Stephen Layton'CD Review
- The Manchester Evening NewsLauridsen: Lux aeternaHe's the thinking choristers' John Rutter, highly regarded in the USA and noted for bringing the multi-voice…CD Review
- Opera MagazineLauridsen: Lux aeternaThe choral work of Polyphony, under the direction of Stephen Layton, is solid and inspiring throughout the…CD Review
- Fanfare USALauridsen: Lux aeternaI had seen the name of Morten Lauridsen with growing frequency over the past few years; he seemed to be…CD Review
- The Daily ExpressLauridsen: Lux aeternaWritten in 1997, US composer Morten Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna was immediately hailed as a classic when it was…CD Review
- American Record GuideLauridsen: Lux aeterna'Layton and company have here produced the finest I've heard among several excellent collections of…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalTavener: The Veil of the TempleThe Veil of the Temple is a huge conception. The full version plays for 480 minutes, according to the Chester…CD Review
- The Philadelphia InquirerTavener: The Veil of the TempleLike most John Tavener works, this one presents itself with an immense sense of spiritual self-importance…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineTavener: The Veil of the TempleCD Review
- BBC Radio 3Lauridsen: Lux aeternaWestminster Cathedral? Broadway? Estonia even? In fact it’s the shamelessly ecstatic writing of the American…CD Review
- Audiophile AuditionTavener: The Veil of the TempleTavener's The Veil of the Temple is massive in scale and influence; the sheer number of singers (more than…CD Review
- The Independent on SundayVarious: O magnum misteriumA sequence of modern music to ancient texts, linked by austere insertions of Sarum plainchant, that surveys…CD Review
- Organists ReviewVarious: O magnum misteriumThe choir conveys Warlock’s genius quite irresistibly. These are superlative performances, beautifully…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineLauridsen: Lux aeternaThere is some outstanding choral singing here, particularly in the six Madrigali. These are vocally…CD Review
- The Seattle TimesLauridsen: Lux aeternaOne of today's most performed choral composers, Northwest native Morten Lauridsen has won legions of…CD Review
- Stereophile USALauridsen: Lux aeterna'The sound is very clean, very focused and detailed, and has remarkable sound-stage depth. Even more so as an…CD Review
- HMVLauridsen: Lux aeternaThis new disc from the multi-award-winning choir Polyphony is something rather special. At once genuinely…CD Review
- BBC Radio 3MacMillan: Seven Last Words from the CrossIf you want contemporary choral music that will challenge you rather than just relax you, then you might want…CD Review
- International Record ReviewMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross'… the qualities which have made Polyphony one of the finest choirs around at the moment are very much in…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineMacMillan: Seven Last Words from the CrossThis splendid new performance from Polyphony also conveys dignity, and a sense (hard to explain) that the…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineTavener: The Veil of the TempleCD Review
- Music Web InternationalLauridsen: Lux aeternaIn April 2002 I wrote the following about a Rubeda Canis Musica Release RCM 19705: "This disc is my choral…CD Review
2004
- The Daily TelegraphTavener: The Veil of the Temple - BBC PromsSunday and Monday night's Proms featured two composers who are leading lights of the vogue for meditative…Concert Review
- The New York TimesTavener: The Veil of the Temple - USANo one can accuse the Lincoln Center Festival of timidity after its presentation this weekend of the British…Concert Review
- Early Music ReviewHandel: MessiahOne of the most popular of London's annual Christmas concerts is the Stephen Layton/Polyphony Messiah at…Concert Review
- Classical Source.comHandel: MessiahThis performance of Messiah, the closing concert of this year's "Christmas Festival" at St John's, was a…Concert Review
- The IndependentPolyphony: Barbican Great Performers Series John Tavener 60th Birthday ConcertIn the Barbican's generously programmed 60th birthday celebration of Sir John Tavener, most of the featured…Concert Review
- The TimesPolyphony: Barbican Great Performers Series John Tavener 60th Birthday ConcertJOHN TAVENER’s music is an uneasy pact between time and eternity. Compelled to exist in time, it strains and…Concert Review
- Classics Today.comA Christmas Present from PolyphonyThis Christmas collection from the esteemed vocal ensemble Polyphony is a compilation from several of the…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineA Christmas Present from Polyphony'Stephen Layton directs the performances and deserves major credit for the very high standards evident on…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphA Christmas Present from Polyphony'This is a disc for listening to in peace, after the Christmas Day festivites are over and the visitors have…CD Review
- Choir and OrganTavener: Choral Music'Stephen Layton's heartfelt commitment to the composer's music brings forth shimmering performances from his…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineTavener: Choral MusicCD Review
- Classic FM MagazineTavener: Choral Music'The power of Tavener at his best is fully unlocked by Polyphony and Stephen Layton, whose sensitivity to the…CD Review
- The Financial TimesTavener: Choral MusicPeace, calm, the eternal, the spiritual: Tavener’s music offers balm to listeners harried by the pressures of…CD Review
- International Record ReviewTavener: Choral Music'for the Tavener devotee, among whose number I include myself, this disc is an essential survey of the…CD Review
- Music WeekTavener: Choral Music'performed with conviction by Stephen Layton's Polyphony. His professional choir manages to convey the…CD Review
- Fanfare USATavener: Choral MusicPolyphony's singing is immaculate, captured in the resonant acoustic of the Temple Church in glorious…CD Review
- The TimesTallis and Pärt: Holst SingersQuite a happening on Saturday night in the hallowed sanctum of the Inner Temple in London. A deep silence in…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineHolst: This have I done for my true loveFor an object lesson in economy of means look no further than the magical setting of ""Terly Terlow""…CD Review
- CD Review UKHolst: This have I done for my true loveFascinating… The Holst Singers cover themselves in distinction. A gem.CD Review
- The Evening StandardBach: St John PassionConcert Review
- MetroBach: St John PassionOpera and Lent oppose each other. Opera is frivolous, extravagant, indulgent, irreverent; Lent is austere…Concert Review
- The TimesMacMillan and Lauridsen: PolyphonyLight and darkness met head on under the fan vaulting, when the Britten Sinfonia and Stephen Layton’s fine…Concert Review
- The Daily TelegraphSchnittke: Holst SingersSublime echoes through a soaring space It was a programme of vaulting ambition from the Holst Singers: five…Concert Review
- The Evening StandardBirthday Concert for Sir John Tavener: Holst Singers and Temple ChoirTavener’s timeless treasures touch the ethereal Like most churches, only more so, the Temple Church is…Concert Review
- Early Music ReviewHandel: MessiahConcert Review
- BBC Radio 3Tavener: Choral MusicAnd finally to my favourite batch of this week's choral releases. Stephen Layton, and his choral group…CD Review
- HMVTavener: The John Tavener CollectionUntil 1997, John Tavener was effectively a cult composer. He shot to international prominence when his Song…CD Review
- The GuardianTavener: Choral MusicStephen Layton's superb choir, Polyphony, does wonders in bringing variety to a sequence of John Tavener's…CD Review
- Klassik HeutePärt: TriodionNeues von Arvo Pärt, dem aus Estland stammenden, jetzt 68jährigen Repräsentanten einer kreativ auf…CD Review
- International Record ReviewRutter: Music for ChristmasSuperb performances which are beautifully recordedCD Review
- Fanfare USARutter: Music for Christmas'Lovingly rendered by Polyphony under Stephen Layton, this should be a disc of choice not only for this year…CD Review
2003
- The Irish TimesIrish Chamber Choir: LamentationsNCC immediately responsive to Stephen Layton’s command of detail and dramatic design Stephen Layton is one of…Concert Review
- Classic FM MagazinePärt: TriodionIf one word could stand for Arvo Part’s recent choral output, it would surely be inclusivity, not just…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazinePärt: TriodionMore than any other composer alive today Arvo Pärt has given us back the idea of eloquent beautiful…CD Review
- Choir and OrganPärt: TriodionI had never been to Venice before this summer, and the relentless beauty of the place overwhelmed me. This…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphPärt: TriodionThis collection, a sequel to Polyphony’s all-Pärt CD for Hyperion, brings together choral music composed from…CD Review
- bbc.co.ukPärt: TriodionThere’s a quiet and cumulative power to these works, given performances of luminous purity by Polyphony and…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesPärt: TriodionPolyphony’s earlier album devoted to the a cappella choral music of the Estonian cult composer featured…CD Review
- The Church TimesTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreWorth staying up for The Temple Church is a fine 13th-century building: soundly designed, and vested in the…Concert Review
- The TimesTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreTavener's musical pilgrimage had run for seven hours,yet from first to last it was mesmerising Once in a…Concert Review
- The IndependentTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreThis is John Tavener's magnum opus. At seven hours' duration, lasting from dusk to dawn, The Veil of the…Concert Review
- The TabletTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreDawn breaks over the Temple Sir John Tavener’s latest work brings together East and West in a highly…Concert Review
- The Los Angeles TimesTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreAll-night journey traverses the soul John Tavener's seven-hour "Veil of the Temple" unfolds in cycles, with…Concert Review
- The IndependentBach: St John PassionSt John's, Smith Square, saw Stephen Layton and Polyphony offer their London version of the piece, on Good…Concert Review
- The Financial TimesPärt: TriodionTriodion is the longest of eight works on this disc, and comprises three odes leading to a simple coda…CD Review
- Music WeekPärt: TriodionWith six world premiere recordings to its credit, this disc would immediately attract attention even if the…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphTavener: The Veil of the Temple - World PremièreLong night's journey into elation For John Tavener, music isn't just about music. It's a way of stilling the…Concert Review
- International Record ReviewPärt: TriodionI anticipate a considerable success for this disc. It brings together eight quite recent works by Pärt, and…CD Review
2002
- Classic FM MagazineWalton: Coronation Te DeumEvery generation delivers an outstanding talent with the vision and commitment necessary to produce…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineWalton: Coronation Te DeumPerformance Sounds This collection of Walton's smaller choral works includes the four carols omitted from the…CD Review
- ABC Classic FM MagazineWalton: Coronation Te DeumWilliam Walton made his reputation in the first instance with his film scores, of which he wrote very many…CD Review
- HMVWalton: Coronation Te DeumThis disc is a tribute to two anniversaries, the centenary of English composer William Walton's birth and the…CD Review
- HMV ChoiceWalton: Coronation Te DeumWhen it came to pomp and circumstance, Oldham's William Walton was a kind of Elgar with attitude, perfectly…CD Review
- The Sunday TelegraphWalton: Coronation Te DeumWhat a splendid work it is, especially when sung with the verve brought to it by Stephen Layton’s choir…CD Review
- Organists ReviewWalton: Coronation Te Deum'From fanfare to finale this is a very fine and fitting centenary compilation indeed'CD Review
- The ObserverWalton: Coronation Te Deum'a wonderfully refreshing interpretation'CD Review
- The ScotsmanBach: St John PassionReal Passion on display Bach's St John Passion is often considered to be the poor relation of the later and…Concert Review
- The Daily TelegraphBach: St John PassionAPTLY contemplative for Good Friday, this performance of Bach's St John Passion had a similar cast of singers…Concert Review
- Music Web InternationalBach: St John PassionThis production is typical of the styles of both the ENO and the director, Deborah Warner, in that it…Concert Review
- The TimesBach: St John PassionDeborah Warner's work in the lyric theatre divides audiences like that of no other director. She has provoked…Concert Review
- The OrganBach: St John PassionThe revival of Deborah Warner’s English National Opera production of J S Bach’s St John Passion on 15 March…Concert Review
- Classical MusicSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangThose who know Schnittke as a master of the grotesque, the trashy or the avant garde would be as surprised to…CD Review
- The Evening StandardSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangAlthough technically the Holst Singers are amateurs, it would be wrong to think they were in any way second…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangA superb and revealing performance of one of Schnittke’s most approachable works The rather anodyne name…CD Review
- BBC NewsSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangThe death of Alfred Schnittke in 1998 robbed the world of one of its most distinctive symphonists. But as…CD Review
- Rough GuideSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangIf in some of his choral music Schnittke sounds a little ‘unlike himself’, this disc reveals a less…CD Review
- Amazon.co.ukSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangIf the idea of an unaccompanied choral work, sung in Russian, lasting more than 40 minutes sounds like hard…CD Review
- International Record ReviewSchnittke: Choir Concerto & Minnesang'if the concerto does not ultimately go down as one of the masterpieces of the late twentieth century choral…CD Review
- The Irish TimesSchnittke: Choir Concerto & Minnesang'the music, direct in manner and imposing in effect, should appeal to anyone who already loves the sacred…CD Review
- The ObserverSchnittke: Choir Concerto & Minnesang'high vocal standards … A fine introduction to some rare and satisfying repertoire'CD Review
- Classics TodaySchnittke: Choir Concerto & Minnesang'Stephen Layton’s Holst Singers really show their mettle … Schnittke fans will want to hear this; and anyone…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalSchnittke: Choir Concerto & Minnesang'The Holst Singers have done an excellent job … They have a beautiful, cool sound in the best British…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicWalton: Coronation Te Deum'A great collection and an absolute winner'CD Review
- The GuardianSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangFrom its very opening the Choir Concerto proclaims its affiliations to the Russian choral tradition…CD Review
- The TimesSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangNone of the music ... gets the spine tingling as much as the Schnittke choral music sung by the Holst…CD Review
- Classica Répertoire FranceWalton: Coronation Te Deum'On trouve chez Layton, avec des chœurs d’une beauté et d’une précision étonnantes, un surcroît de chaleur et…CD Review
- Music WeekWalton: Coronation Te DeumGramophone Award-winning choir Polyphony and their inspired conductor Stephen Layton appear set for further…CD Review
- Music WeekSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangSchnittke: Choir Concerto; Minnesang; Voices of Nature. Holst Singers/Layton (Hyperion CDA67297). Stephen…CD Review
- American Record GuideWalton: Coronation Te Deum'This sterling collection should win Walton’s choral music many new fans'CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineSchnittke: Choir Concerto & MinnesangPerformance Sounds No longer need Alfred Schnittke's daunting and often overwhelming Choir Concerto be seen…CD Review
2001
- Time OutHandel: MessiahPolyphony met the Age of Enlightenment; they said “Handel’s oratorio ?”, the others said “Stephen Layton…Concert Review
- Diapason FranceRutter: Music for Christmas'Les arrangements sont ingénieux’CD Review
- The ScotsmanRutter: Music for ChristmasWhen the chirpy Shepherd’s Pipe Carol, the instantly singable Star Carol, or the literal sound effects of the…CD Review
- HMV ChoiceRutter: Music for Christmas'Polyphony beautifully continue the English tradition with joyful refinement'CD Review
- The Evening StandardRutter: Music for Christmas'[Rutter] could not have asked for better performers'CD Review
- American Record GuideRutter: Music for Christmas'A treat for all Rutter fans! … the program is bound to satisfy anyone seeking a balanced program of…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineVarious: Christmas through the ages - Six of the bestIf audience participation muddies the join-in carols in the King’s disc, here’s something cool, poised and…CD Review
- Amazon.co.ukRutter: Music for ChristmasIn an introduction to this disc of Christmas music, John Rutter tellingly commends the Christmas carol as one…CD Review
- Classics TodayRutter: Music for Christmas"The performances are uniformly excellent; Stephen Layton and his Polyphony vocal ensemble have shown a…CD Review
- The Mail on SundayRutter: Music for Christmas'It’s hard to imagine them better performed than by the award-winning British choir Polyphony'CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineRutter: Music for Christmas'The performances by both choir and orchestra are ideal in tone, style and accomplishment … A Christmas treat'CD Review
- The Sydney Morning HeraldMozart: Requiem - Australian Chamber OrchestraSublime music and a Requiem performance to die for “Less is more”, a phrase coined by Bauhaus architect Mies…Concert Review
- International Record ReviewRutter: GloriaThis ample anthology, poignantly dedicated to the memory of the composer's son, opens with a triumphantly…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineRutter: GloriaPerformance: Sound: John Rutter's output of sacred choral works is immense, and these vibrant performances…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineRutter: GloriaThis superb disc contains a balanced cross-section of John Rutter's sacred choral music, spanning over a…CD Review
- Amazon.co.ukRutter: GloriaAs demonstrated on Rutter-Gloria and other Sacred Music, John Rutter is what happens when you mix some Fauré…CD Review
- The Daily TelegraphBach: St John PassionThe Good Friday performance of Bach's St John Passion at St John's, Smith Square, was distinguished by the…Concert Review
- The ObserverBach: St John PassionSt John v St Matthew The stern clarity of Bach's St John Passion makes it as compelling as any straight…Concert Review
- The Financial TimesPärt: PassioPassions abound at Easter - chiefly, but not exclusively, Bach's, after the gospel accounts. On Sunday I…Concert Review
- The TimesPärt: PassioSt John's is the most direct of the Passions, some would say the most tendentious: a couple of years ago…Concert Review
- American Record GuideBritten: Sacred and ProfaneThis collection of some of Britten’s a cappella choral music is wide-ranging, from the Hymn to the Virgin…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineBritten: Sacred and ProfaneAMDG presents as formidable a challenge to its singers as any of Britten's compositions for unaccompanied…CD Review
- Diapason FranceBritten: Sacred and ProfaneAprès un formidable récital Cornelius (chez le même éditeur), Stephen Layton revient en Angleterre pour fêter…CD Review
- The Evening StandardBritten: Sacred and ProfaneAfter hearing their latest CD of choral works by Britten, nothing will dissuade me from the conclusion that…CD Review
- Music Web InternationalBritten: Sacred and ProfaneA crack choir who sing with immaculate intonation and a sure sense of internal balance … I was left wishing…CD Review
- The Age, MelbourneBritten: Sacred and ProfanePolyphony’s exceptional energy, technical prowess and expressive flexibility make the most of every word and…CD Review
- Cathedral MusicBritten: Sacred and ProfaneA valued possession … highly recommendedCD Review
- Fanfare USASchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 5This disc by itself is enough to establish [Maltman] as one of the genre’s most important recent exponents…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 5With this superbly executed recital, Maltman leaps in a single bound into the front rank of Lieder…CD Review
- International Record ReviewSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 5This is a treasurable issue, generous in quality and quantity alike. As with the Hyperion Schubert Song…CD Review
- AmazonSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 5There are so many delights to be found here, and the combination of a beautiful voice, Johnson’s superbly…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineBritten: Sacred and ProfanePerformance Sounds Polyphony’s brand of singing, clean as a whistle, rhythmically wonderfully alive…CD Review
- International Record ReviewBritten: Sacred and ProfaneAlmost the only criticism I have of this superb programme is that in Sacred and Profane, Britten's late group…CD Review
- Amazon.co.ukBritten: Sacred and ProfaneThis disc containing the major part of Britten's mixed-voice a cappella repertoire (the Hymn to St Cecilia is…CD Review
- Fanfare USAVarious: Christmas through the Ages'Other than to assure you that it works for me, need I say more?'CD Review
- Classic FM MagazineRutter: Music for ChristmasThose of you who have ever sung in a choir, particularly around Christmas time, will be familiar with John…CD Review
2000
- The Mail on SundayHandel: Messiah...recent years have seen attempts to escape from the Victorian massed-choir approach: to recapture its…Concert Review
- The Independent on SundayHandel: MessiahSt John's Smith Square seemed an unlikely setting for anything but the most genteel of performances but…Concert Review
- The Independent on SundayHandel: MessiahHandel: Messiah - The Independent on Sunday St John's Smith Square seemed an unlikely setting for anything…Concert Review
- Gramophone MagazineCornelius: The Three KingsAn appealing collection of choral works from the composer of the celebrated carol, Three Kings from Persian…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineCornelius: The Three KingsThese are superior performances, Layton’s group Polyphony offering refined tone and exceptional precision…CD Review
- Classics TodayCornelius: The Three KingsThis program offers an exciting trip into what for most listeners will be a world of happy discovery.CD Review
- The GuardianCornelius: The Three KingsPolyphony sing with solemn beauty. The sound is sumptuous and richly atmospheric.CD Review
- American Record GuideCornelius: The Three KingsEnthusiastically recommended.CD Review
- The TimesSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 4Three unaccompanied choral settings are most sensitively sung by Stephen Layton’s London Schubert Chorale…CD Review
- The Sunday TimesSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 4At a time when the multinational labels fill their booklets with gushing hype about the artists, Hyperion's…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineSchumann: The Complete Songs, Vol. 4At a time when the multinational labels fill their booklets with gushing hype about the artists, Hyperion's…CD Review
- Time EuropeBach: St John Passion with ENOThe English National Opera brings Bach to vivid dramatic life Against a pale yellow background the chorus…Concert Review
- OperaBach: St John Passion with ENOSeeing the light It may not be what Bach intended, but ENO's St John Passion is a unique event. The live lamb…Concert Review
- The GuardianBach: St John Passion with ENOJust three elements make the new show worth catching: an intensely moving portrayal by Mark Padmore as the…Concert Review
- The TimesBach: St John Passion with ENOWhat is truth? THE big question, as posed by Richard Morrison earlier in the week, is if those in the…Concert Review
- The IndependentBach: St John Passion with ENOJesus Christ Opera Star Concerts of Bach’s St John Passion are familiar Eastertide events. Now the…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineSchubert: The Hyperion Schubert Edition, Vol. 35Throughout the disc, Graham Johnson's accompaniments are typically illuminating with numerous touches of…CD Review
- JyllandspostenPolyphony: DenmarkThroughout this year and through 10 concerts and lectures and a most readworthy book, the unique project Er…Concert Review
- BBC Music MagazineSchubert: The Hyperion Schubert Edition, Vol. 34This disc is a must for any serious Schubert collector, its pleasures enhanced by Graham Johnson's observant…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineSchubert: The Hyperion Schubert Edition, Vol. 34A feast of finely wrought, intelligent interpretations… the readings make an indelible impression.CD Review
1999
- Classic CDGrechaninov: VespersStephen Layton’s Holst Singers treat the piece (legimately) as a concert work and bring to bear a light…CD Review
- The GuardianGrechaninov: VespersThree years before Rachmaninov wrote his Vespers, Gretchaninov, in 1912, wrote this mellifluous setting of…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineGrechaninov: VespersIt is an expertly disciplined ensemble, and technically its musicianship is impeccable. Claire WrathallCD Review
- Choir and OrganGrechaninov: VespersNumerous delights. The performance by the Holst Singers is stunningly good. This serene, delectable music is…CD Review
- The ScotsmanGrechaninov: VespersGreat blocks of beautifully contructed sound are stunning in their apparent simplicity.CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineGrechaninov: VespersGrechaninov's music has, in recent years, begun once more to be performed and recorded as it deserves. There…CD Review
1998
- Gramophone MagazinePärt: Berliner MassArvo Part's music is about equilibrium and balance ‚ balance between consonance and dissonance, between…CD Review
- Choir and OrganPärt: Berliner MassFar from being inaccessible, Arvo Pärt's music is mesmerising, and this collection immerses the listener into…CD Review
- American Record GuidePärt: Berliner MassFar from being inaccessible, Arvo Pärt's music is mesmerising, and this collection immerses the listener into…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazinePärt: Berliner MassPärt’s music remains an object of unstinting wonderCD Review
- Organists ReviewPärt: Berliner MassCommitted and definitive performances of this intense music.CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineRutter: RequiemIt seems perverse, in a necessarily brief review, to make a mystery or a penance where essentially all is…CD Review
1997
- CD Review UKRutter: RequiemCOMPOSER John Rutter made a great impression on a Torquay audience, when he came to speak to Torbay Recorded…CD Review
- BBC Music MagazineRutter: RequiemFew John Rutter fans will be without a copy of the composer's own Collegium recording of his Requiem. But…CD Review
- The SingerRutter: RequiemHyperion have done John Rutter proud with this disc, and he them. The Requiem, for all its acknowledged…CD Review
- The Inverness CourierRutter: RequiemThe highland audience was introduced to the music of Britain’s foremost contemporary composer of choral music…CD Review
- The Yorkshire PostRutter: RequiemJohn Rutter's written introduction to this disc includes a curiously petulant defence of his craft. He…CD Review
- Amazon.co.ukRutter: Requiem'Sensitive, beautifully blended singing and playing. First class'CD Review
- The TimesRutter: RequiemThe music of the contemporary English composer John Rutter has gained a measure of popularity, and this disc…CD Review
- Soundscape AustraliaVarious: Ikon, Vol. 1The timbral and textural palette of Russian choral sound is clearly evident to Layton and the ensemble with…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineVarious: Ikon, Vol. 1The most interesting discovery to be made on this anthology is Sviridov's choral music, both sacred (though…CD Review
- Fanfare USAVarious: Ikon, Vol. 1Uniformly charismatic performances. Fine engineering and notes too. Highly recommended.CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineRutter: RequiemRutter Requiems King's College Choir, Cambridge / Cleobury Cambridge Singers / Rutter Polyphony / Layton…CD Review
1996
- The TimesVarious: A Capella Christmas ConcertTake a couple of dozen choice 20th-century Christmas carols, group them imaginatively add a dash of…Concert Review
- The Sunday TimesHahn: SongsThis gorgeous set … IrresistableCD Review
- The Sunday TelegraphHahn: SongsWhat treasures are here … The two discs provide an unmissable opportunity to explore a composer who is…CD Review
- Diapason FranceHahn: SongsGraham Johnson choisir ses chanteurs qui possèdent une musicalité irréprochable et un français non seulement…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineHahn: SongsSome fascinating rarities.CD Review
- Fanfare USAGrainger: Jungle BookWhen I was going through a conventionally turbulent adolescence in the peaceful New York suburb of White…CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineGrainger: Jungle BookHere now is the second disc in recent months to bring us face to face with Grainger. His music (or such music…CD Review
- The Age, MelbourneGrainger: Jungle Book"The worth of my music will never be guessed or its value to mankind felt, until the approach to it is…CD Review
- The Chicago TribuneGrainger: Jungle BookCollections of the music of Percy Grainger usually emphasize its energy and spriteliness. Not this one…CD Review
- Diapason FranceGrainger: Jungle BookAprés la belle anthologie de Gardiner (Philips), ce superbe album vient confirmer l’extraordinaire intuition…CD Review
- Fono Forum, GermanyGrainger: Jungle BookHierzulande ist der amerikanische Musen-Allrounder Percy Grainger (1882-1961) bestenfalls als exzentrischer…CD Review
- Soundscapes AustraliaGrainger: Jungle Book'A capella singing at its very finest'CD Review
- The ObserverHahn: SongsTo wonderful songs … [the artists] bring delicacy, grace, an emotion the more poignant for being understated…CD Review
- Classica Répertoire FranceGrainger: Jungle BookLe vaste cycle Jungle Book occupa Grainger pendant rien moins que cinquante-neuf ans ; exactement de 1898 à…CD Review
1995
- The TimesVarious: Polyphony Christmas ConcertTen ways to sing 'Hail Mary' There can be fewer nicer ways to spend Christmas than in the company of…Concert Review
- CD Compact, SpainBritten: Christ's NativityInterpretaciones tan refrescantes como escrupulosasCD Review
- Diapason, FranceBritten: Christ's NativityRemarquable! Les Holst Singers se révèlent être de remarquables interprètes de leur cher répertoire national…CD Review
- Organists ReviewBritten: Christ's NativityTheir commitment to what they are singing rings out with every note. A Boy was Born is imbued with more…CD Review
- Fanfare USAVaughan Williams: Over hill, over daleA most worthwhile enterprise, strongly recommendedCD Review
- CD Compact, SpainVaughan Williams: Over hill, over daleEn todo momento, los cantores de Layton demuenstran un dominio total y lenguaje musical de Vaughan Williams ……CD Review
- Classica Répertoire FranceVaughan Williams: Over hill, over daleUne réussite artistique exemplaireCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineVaughan Williams: Over hill, over daleThis new Vaughan Williams collection complements the Holst Singers’ critically acclaimed 1993 CD of Holst…CD Review
- The Musical TimesGrainger and Grieg: At Twilight'This scalp-prickling, sometimes spine-chilling, disc should not be missed'CD Review
- Choir and OrganGrainger and Grieg: At TwilightThis is a disc which will take a long time to put back on the shelfCD Review
- BBC Music MagazineGrainger and Grieg: At Twilight'Superior performances by Layton and Polyphony'CD Review
- Gramophone MagazineBritten: Christ's NativityChrist's Nativity, earlier known as The King's Birthday, a Christmas suite in five movements, receives here…CD Review
Undated
- The Arts DeskSt John Passion at St John's Smith Square: review, The Arts DeskSt John Passion, Polyphony, OAE, Layton, St John's Smith Square review - defiant performance reveals Bach…Concert Review
- The GuardianSt John Passion at St John's Smith Square: 5 star review, The GuardianSt John Passion review, Polyphony and OAE deliver an outstanding, vivid rendition. An extraordinarily moving…Concert Review
- BachtrackSt John Passion at St John's Smith Square: 5 star review, BachtrackJS Bach’s St John Passion opens with a tremendous 14-bar instrumental prelude in which its driving semiquaver…Concert Review
- Christmas Oratorio at the Barbican, London"Directed by Stephen Layton, the [Britten] Sinfonia and the dozen singers of Polyphony warmed up the chilly…Concert Review
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