Michael Cox, Timothy Hugh, Jean Rigby, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Richard Hickox, London Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Chorus - Vaughan Williams: Five Tudor Portraits / Five Variations of "Dives and Lazarus" - Richard Hickox / London Symphony Orchestra

Here's some highly engaging and often naughty Tudor poetry that, when you can figure out what the poet (Skelton) is talking about, is sure to entertain you almost as much as Vaughan Williams' racy and raunchy musical settings. Actually, it's not all smut; there's a tender lament of one Jane Scroop for her dead sparrow, which ends with a half comical, half sorrowful curse on all felines! In sum, this work certainly ranks high in the composer's extensive choral production, and it's a wonder that it's not better known. Richard Hickox is a born choral conductor. He secures excellent diction, pitch, and rhythm from his singers, while at the same time ensuring a vivid orchestral response. Music worth knowing.--David Hurwitz