Paul Hillier has done Christmas collections with a number of the choirs he’s worked with, and his new disc with Chamber Choir Ireland joins a series that delves into repertoire from both sides of the Atlantic.
Arrangements abound, including ones in Irish by Eamonn Ó Gallchobhair and Fiontán Ó Cearbhaill, and 10 by Hillier himself – his way with the Austrian Hissa, Buama has a buoyant, Carl Orff-like directness.
The original works include a short, spare Carol by Gerald Barry, a delectable Sweet was the song the Virgin sung by US experimentalist Henry Cowell (whose grandfather was dean of Kildare Cathedral), and Merk auf, mein Herz, a joyful motet attributed to Johann Christoph Bach.
The 23 tracks are interspersed with the haunting austerity of the O Antiphons.
