Decca's British Music Collection is reissuing some
excellent recordings of repertoire which deserves the highest levels
of recognition. This Howells disc is one such example, well recorded
twelve years ago in idiomatic and sensitive performances by artists
who have the music in their blood.
Although Howells has a wider range than the music featured
here, it remains a central aspect of his achievement. Nor should it
remained cloistered within a church context; it should be heard and
appreciated as widely as possible. On those grounds alone a recording
has to be welcomed; but there is more to it than that, since the performances
are so sensitively drawn.
Much of this music was composed for King's College
Cambridge, the performers on this CD. And whereas listeners might more
normally hear just individual pieces in the context of music by other
composers, this compilation makes it possible to place the pieces in
a more consistent context as it relates to Howells himself. The range
features both subtlety and sheer splendour, not least because of the
telling contributions of organist Peter Barley, who Stephen Cleobury
his own special chance to shine in playing the imaginative Rhapsody
from Howells's Opus 17.
However, Barley's playing has great refinement when
required, adding much to the eloquence and sensitivity of the performances.
A particular highlight is the motet Save Him, Earth, for Cherishing,
which Howells wrote in 1967, following the assassination of President
If occasionally a more full toned choral contribution
might have been more fulfilling, the compensations among these performances
outweigh the doubts by some considerable margin. The booklet notes are
on the short side, which is strange, considering that the majority of
the eight pages are left blank.