Russian Treasures

Rachmaninov's Vespers and Liturgy of St John Chrysostom have long been flag-bearers for the music of the Russian Orthodox Church in the West. Here the singers of Nigel Short's Tenebrae intersperse movements from both works with Tchaikovsky's Legend and music that's altogether less familiar, by the likes of Alexander Gretchaninov, Nikolay Golovanov, Pavel Chesnokov, Viktor Kalinnikov and Nikolay Kedrov. The result is a subtle range of flavours within a tradition that's celebrated for its combination of calm processional and irresistible surge. Tenebrae are fully up to the challenges posed to the lower voices, though the choir doesn't have the edge of richly-knotted vibrato that often comes with the fervency of Russian voices. The English patina of the upper voices adds a sheen of the familiar to the sound. url.ie/m8el