Comfort and Joy: Volume One
Classics Today
Artistic Quality: 9; Sound Quality: 9
David Vernier

Rather than repeat myself, I'll leave it up to each reader to refer to my earlier reviews of this fine professional male-voice ensemble from Minnesota--all of which have been very positive from both a programming and artistic performance standpoint. This new release won't disappoint fans of the group, and it certainly will please any listener who loves Christmas choral music, even though many of the selections have been well represented on numerous other recordings. Although it may be tempting to compare Cantus to another well-known professional male ensemble, Chanticleer, Cantus does not attempt to replicate SATB-scored music with so-called male sopranos--nor does it even list altos among its members. As far as I'm concerned, that's a good thing, but it also poses problems of texture and balance when they perform music originally written for mixed choirs.

Take the well-loved and much-performed "O magnum mysterium" by Morten Lauridsen, for example. In this arrangement for male voices--provided by the composer--the original key is set a whole step higher, and the upper voices sing an octave lower than the original soprano and alto parts. The resulting harmonies are the same (and this piece is all about harmony, after all), but the voicings are completely different. Yes, the piece maintains its elemental power and beauty, but the full flower of its luscious suspensions and dissonances is somewhat weakened because the textures are just too squished and dense, and the lines meant to be on top aren't necessarily there--and besides, we miss the presence of the female soprano and alto timbres. Yes, I'm being picky, but given the fact that alternative conceptualizations are certainly valid, the result must be musically justifiable in every respect.

Fortunately, only a few of the works here can be subjected to such scrutiny by super-critical observers; the rest are just plain wonderfully sung and sensitively interpreted by these world-class singers. Although Chanticleer may think it owns the Biebl "Ave Maria," Cantus makes a strong claim here with its ideal blend and natural, flowing, vibrant rendition. I'm not a fan of the free-range, unprocessed vibrato that forms the group's prevailing sound, but it makes a distinctive and often warmly satisfying foundation for pieces such as Cornelius' "Die Könige" and Lawrence Wiliford's arrangement of the Welsh lullaby "Suo Gân," as well as for the spiritual "Mary had a baby" and John Jacob Niles' setting of the Appalachian tune "I wonder as I wander." The sound, recorded at the Sander Concert Hall at Goshen College in Indiana, is a bit too reverberant for my taste--10 voices just don't sound like this live--but it certainly gives full-bodied substance to the performances and, especially with the volume turned up a bit, really fills the room with the uniquely rich and colorful quality that only a male-voice choir can produce.