Search - Sneak's Noyse :: Christmas Now Is Drawing Near: Engl Folk Carols

A delightful, varied & thoughtful collection

B. FILBERT | Oregon, USA | 12/19/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I purchased this CD a number of years ago, and have found it to be one of my favorites. It is a superb balance to the "refined" style of carol singing I so enjoy from the famous English choirs. It also gives one something of a sense of what the rural carol tradition was like before the Victorians "gilded" it (though, of course, they also saved many carols, as well). The conceit of this album is that a group of carolers have come to your home, and proceed to offer a wide-ranging concert of Advent and Christmastide pieces (vocal, instrumental, and mixed). The more "primitive" versions of some well-known carols can be found here, as well as some truly ancient-sounding works that probably were current all the way to the end of the 19th century in some parts of England. The concert includes sections focusing on Advent, the Nativity, Christmas Legends, Carol Roots, Plenty and Poverty, The Christian Message, and Farewell to Christmas. All-in-all, I cannot urge you enough to acquire this CD if you are looking for a deeper, more "rustic" take on the Caroling tradition, and the application of these old texts/tunes to the spiritual journey made during Advent and the 12 days of Christmas."

Would there were more

R. Fusillo | Atlanta, GA United States | 12/24/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Christmas is arrived and in perfect form as soon as we put on this CD. The joy we get in hearing it over and over ( I am listening as I type)is tempered by the annoying realization that this group did not make a dozen more like it. I would happily buy them all.
I keep clicking five stars but it doesn't want to do it. I would give it ten."