Sunday Worship, Radio 4

[Peter Clark]

Did anybody hear this? I'm not sure where I stand. I the opening hymn the tenors seemed to dominate - they reminded me of a tape that Lionel Dakers and the RSCM did years ago, with examples of how not to sing a hymn. What was that Alleluiatic verse during the offertory? Hints of Matthias I thought but really could have been any late late 20th - 21st century British composer. The plainsing Veni was beautifully sung. I think the simpler the music the more effective here but the Mozart Gloria was not so successful I feel.

 

Peter

[Guest Hector5]

I agree - I think it was very badly recorded, and the organ sounded awful - so perhaps it was all rather badly 'miked up'.

 

Hector

[Vox Humana]

<grump mode>

 

My wife had set our alarm clock radio so that it came on somewhere near the start of the last hymn, so the sound wasn't the best and nor was my mood. What I heard was a succession of verses sung with nice precision and good tuning, but all sounding exectly alike. There didn't seem to be any variation at all, not even in the organ registration. Since I couldn't hear the words they might have been singing the same verse over and over. The last verse was only detectable because it had a chord altered here and there to no particular purpose. What was the point of that? Unless it's a particularly dramatic effect the odd aimless change does nothing to uplift anyone or anything - and even then you have the problem of sustaining the thrill and avoiding an anti-climax. If you're going to do a last verse harmonisation, jolly well do the job properly! Easy to say that, of course; not so easy to do.

 

</grump mode>