Britten: A Festival Of Britten - National Youth Choirs of Great Britain (2 CDs)

In the thirty years since the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain were born, they have continued to blossom and flourish. New director Ben Parry was quick to notice they share their birthday in 2013 with Britten’s centenary, and the result is this celebratory double album. Over the course of a year the Delphian engineers have followed the various choirs on their courses, and for the first time all seven groups appear on disc – six hundred singers, eight conductors, in three different venues. The vast range of Britten’s choral output encompasses work to match the character of each of the different choirs, from the fresh-faced eagerness of the Training Choirs to the maturity and sophistication of the elite Chamber Choir. The rigorous training all these singers enjoy bears abundant fruit. Their vocal discipline, their energy, their sheer enthusiasm are vividly conveyed in this unique double birthday celebration.

Each choir has its own conductor but the standard is admirably consistent. For the collector, the main point is not that the choirs are young and amateur so much as the numbers involved...the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain have given a strong reminder of their ambition and quality, if any was needed." --Gramophone

"The singing is skilful throughout. Above all, the listener consistently feels the commitment and enthusiasm of these young musicians. Obviously, these recordings remind us what a skilled composer for choirs Britten was...I think Benjamin Britten would have loved this album and that he’d rejoice to know that these young people are being so effectively trained, not just in his music but in the joys of singing." --MusicWeb International