The Choir of Merton College, Oxford / Benjamin Nicholas & Britten Sinfonia - Orchestral Anthems: Elgar | Finzi | Dyson | Howells

For the Choir of Merton College, Oxford's first collaboration with Britten Sinfonia, Benjamin Nicholas has brought together a collection of sacred works from the first half of the twentieth century. A little-known fact is that these stalwarts of the English repertory were either originally intended to be heard with orchestra, or subsequently orchestrated by their composer or a close colleague. Written for enthronements, coronations and the nation's grandest choral festivals, these national 'standards' are here brought back to life in Delphian's largest recording to-date, their orchestral accompaniments affording them the richness, pomp and majesty associated with that epoch.