In the Words of John Rutter
“Life, when we look back on it, is a series of intense moments we can recall but never recapture; put another way, it is like watching a film with no rewind button. Music, though, has the power to bring back the feeling of a special moment and our bitter-sweet regret that it has gone, which is one reason we turn to it…
Such were this reviewer’s musings on listening to the album Far Above a Midnight Sky by Vista Musicale, a group of dedicated singers and instrumentalists whose mission is clearly to reconnect us with our more tender, private feelings. The album is the work of composers Colin Upton and Charles Mauleverer – their language the type of music which beguiles and haunts us with sweet melody rather than arouses us with the shock of the new or bludgeons us with the abrasive. There are eighteen tracks, some vocal or choral, some orchestral, some instrumental, all with evocative titles such as Through the Mists of Time and Blue Remembered Hills, and the mood is predominantly gentle and wistful, tinged with nostalgia.
I love it all, and the John Wilson Orchestra is on hand to underscore the soloists or swell to an emotional climax when needed. The performances are lovely, with Harry Sever’s pure treble, Adrian Brendel’s eloquent cello, and Andrew Cottee’s lush orchestral arrangements as highlights, so… start the CD, surrender, let your eyes mist over when no one is looking, but maybe, with such a gorgeous box of musical chocolates on your CD player, savour a few tracks at a time rather than gobble it all at once.”
