Choral Listening Series - Recording #6

Lux Aeterna - Edward Elgar, arr. Cameron (performed by Voces8) 

This is one of those unicorn recordings that seems to get better each time you listen to it. Absolutely stunning musicality on display here, and I encourage you to take the time to listen to this one a few times to absorb the mastery of both the arrangement and the performance.
 
This piece is much newer than the Gibbons, as Elgar lived in the early 20th century. Curiously, it is not originally a choral work. Its actual name is "Nimrod", and it belongs to the Enigma Variations, which is one of Elgar's most famous orchestral pieces. The arrangement for SSAATTBB has been exceptionally well done, and was fittingly set to the Lux Aeterna text (a blessing of perpetual light). I had the pleasure of re-arranging Lux Aeterna for TTBB men's ensemble, and my former group Il Sono premiered it a number of years back. 
 
One of the things to take away from this piece is the group's sense of dynamic control. Listen to how they pace the crescendos and diminuendos. Amazing!