Album

To most people, Charles Gounod is just the composer of the wedding classic Ave Maria, based on Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier Prelude No. 1. While that work didn't start out as an intentionally religious piece, Gounod did write hundreds of vocal and choral sacred works, much of them for use by amateur church choirs. Not all of his sacred music is as broadly drawn as his Messe solennelle de Sainte Cécile—the grand and glorious "Sanctus" of which is a favorite show piece for opera singers—as this sampling from the Choir of Gonville & Caius College proves. Many of these motets and sacred songs will seem restrained to those who know Gounod's operas or anything about his life, although there are some moments that lean toward the theatrical. These are found more in the sacred songs, the pieces not necessarily meant for liturgical use, such as Prière du Soire and Le Vendredi-Saint. The latter tells the Passion story in a verse-refrain structure, alternating the more intense verses with somber, reverent refrains that celebrate the triumph in the story. Gounod uses brief half-step modulations in this piece and in the expansive Miserere, adding more interest to his always naturally appealing melodies. The Miserere, composed as a stand-alone work, uses the same full complement of soloists, chorus, and organ that a complete Mass setting would call for. It also uses elements of canon and ends with a triumphant fugue, making it the most complex work on the disc. The other works, those meant for use in a Mass and with Latin texts, are more traditionally hymn-sounding: reverent, slow, and reassuring. And yet there is still enough variety in the settings—even among four settings of O Salutaris Hostia—for this sampling of Gounod's work to keep a listener from getting bored. The Regina caeli almost has the joie de vivre of a student song. The one misstep in the program is the overly familiar Ave Maria. It is not only unnecessary to the collection, but the arrangement for soprano, chorus, violin, and organ is overly scored and unbalanced. The choir, soprano Joanna Burton, and director Geoffrey Webber, perform with excellent intonation and ensemble work, and with a balance of devotion and spirit that is spot on. The sound is also precisely what is expected for this type of music, with the roomy resonation of a large church, but not too cold or distant. For those who want to go beyond the Bach-Gounod Ave Maria, this is a great starting point.

© Patsy Morita, Rovi

CD 1
Charles Gounod Composer Chants sacrés, 60 part songs for voices and organ in 3 volumes Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Joanna Burton Soprano, Thomas Hewitt Jones Organ
1	O salutaris, for mezzo-soprano, in Ab for tenor and organ	4:05			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Regina coeli, for 5 voices Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
2	Regina coeli, for 5 voices	1:30			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Le Vendredi-Saint, for chorus (also with piano) Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
3	Le Vendredi-Saint, for chorus (also with piano)	6:56			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Missa angeli custodes, for soloists, chorus and organ Work Pierre Dechant Tenor, Karl Gietzmann Alto, Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, James Halliday Bass, Joe Harper Tenor, Laurenne Chapman Soprano, Sam Queen Bass
4	O salutaris hostia, in Eb	2:14			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer There is a green hill far away Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Joanna Burton Soprano, Thomas Hewitt Jones Organ
5	There is a green hill far away	4:09			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Ave verum Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Francesca Massey Piano, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
6	Ave verum	4:12			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Miserere, for 4 soloists, chorus and organ ad lib. Work Pierre Dechant Tenor, Johnny Herford Bass, Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Thomas Hewitt Jones Organ, Kate Symonds Alto, Clare Lloyd Soprano
7	Miserere, for 4 soloists, chorus and organ ad lib.	14:14			$2.49
Charles Gounod Composer Prière du soir, for chorus (also with piano and organ ad lib.) Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
8	Prière du soir, for chorus (also with piano and organ ad lib.)	3:48			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Ave Maria (Adaptation of Bach's Prelude in C, BWV846) Work Francesca Massey Piano, Maya Magub Violin, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Joanna Burton Soprano, Thomas Hewitt Jones Organ
9	Ave Maria (Adaptation of Bach's Prelude in C, BWV846)	5:09			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer D'un coeur qui t'aime, for soprano, alto, and piano Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
10	D'un coeur qui t'aime, for soprano, alto, and piano	6:31			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer O salutaris, for chorus and piano or organ Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Francesca Massey Piano, Maya Magub Violin, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Joanna Burton Soprano
11	O salutaris, for chorus and piano or organ	4:07			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Offertorium for Organ Work Francesca Massey Piano, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
12	Offertorium for Organ	5:19			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Chants sacrés, 60 part songs for voices and organ in 3 volumes Work 4:27 Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director
13	Per sanctissimam virginitatem, in Ab for 4 equal voices	2:24			$0.99
14	O salutaris hostia, in Eb for equal voices	2:03			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer La rédemption, trilogy of oratorios for soloists, chorus and orchestra Work Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Chorus/Choir, Francesca Massey Piano, Geoffrey Webber Chorus/Choir Director, Joanna Burton Soprano
15	From thy love as a Father	3:27			$0.99