Hodie / Fantasia on Christmas Carols

Vaughan Williams was 81 when he wrote this. It is a portmanteau piece, a form pioneered by Britten, with narrations alternating with chorals, hyms and songs enclosed within a prologue and epilogue. The words set range from the biblical to Thomas Hardy. The narrations, sung by a boys' choir accompanied by a chamber organ, tell the story of the Nativity, and are often followed by a short tenor solo with full orchestral accompaniment. These brief, melismatic sections are of extraordinary emotional power. They still make me go all funny after 30 years. Set in this regular framework go the assorted numbers which vary in character from a gentle lullaby to the glittering March of the Three Kings (the words of which were written by the composer's wife). The work has been criticised for the disparate styles of the settings - some songs like early RVW, others set to the glassy, late orchestral style of Sinfonia Antartica. To me it adds variety as well as demonstrating the sheer breadth of his music. This is a gorgeous piece to play on Christmas day and it will refresh your spirit no end.

The performance is first rate, with a trio of distinguished soloists. The recording is remarkably good for its age.

The Fantasia on Christmas Carols is a much earlier work and its title is self- explanatory. It is a very attractive work which is given a perfectly acceptable performance here. A mystery is the name of the band : "String Orchestra", which sounds alarmingly generic. Guildford, a town to the west of London, does have a semi-professional orchestra so maybe the players are from this.

The insert notes are by Michael Kennedy, who was a close friend of the composer and is the leading authority on his music. Full texts are included for Hodie.


Can't go wrong with Hodie   January 2, 2003
Ahmed E. Ismail (Cambridge, MA United States)
16 out of 16 found this review helpful

The other reviewers have it right in giving this disc five stars, at least for Hodie. First the bad news: the Fantasia is given here in a slightly bloodless version for baritone, chorus, strings, and organ, which can't quite match the original.

Now the good news: the performance of Hodie on offer here is amazing. As good as Hickox is in his later EMI recording, he and his team of soloists are clearly outmatched. We have captured here early recordings of both Dame Janet Baker and John Shirley-Quirk, two of the great British singers of modern times, each in gorgeous voice and both deeply committed to the work. If you need much convincing of this, try "It was the winter wild" or "The Shepherds sing"; you won't be disappointed. Of course, we shouldn't leave Richard Lewis out, even though he has a somewhat smaller role in the proceedings than the other two. In exchange, he has the challenging hymn "Bright portals of the sky," which he delivers with seeming ease. Their trio in the "March of the Three Kings" is the crowning moment of the work, until topped a few minutes later by the bank-holiday fervor of the finale.

The choral and orchestral work is on pace with that of the soloists: I would say that one can hear more orchestral and choral detail on this disc remastered from the mid-1960's than is available on the Hickox recording!

So, in short, this disc is a must-have for Hodie; if you want the "Fantasia" too, go for Matthew Best's recording with Thomas Allen, the Corydon Singers, and the English Chamber Orchestra on Hyperion.