TAVENER Ex Maria virgine. Birthday Sleep. O Do Not Move. A Nativity. Marienhymne. O Thou Gentle Light. Angels • Timothy Brown, dir; Clare College Cambridge Ch • NAXOS 8.572168 (63:46 Text and Translation)

Two of the selections are first recordings: Ex Maria virgine, the major work at 38 minutes, and Marienhymne. The other works are not widely available, for Birthday Sleep was recorded by Stephen Layton (28:4), A Nativity by Matthew Greenall (not issued over here), and Angels by David Hill (23: 2). I cannot find the first recordings of the other two pieces.

Marienhymne is sung in German, while O Thou Gentle Light is sung in Greek (the ancient hymn Phos hiláron, which Dom Lucien David also set as a neo-Gregorian chant). The earliest work on the program, Angels, dates from 1985.

The major work is a setting of nine age-old texts in Latin or English separated by a refrain, “Ex Maria virgine,” the first movement being repeated at the end. One movement has a Greek refrain, the original of “hail, Mary,” but the first word is pronounced “kay-ray” rather than “ky-ruh.” The composer has a devoted following, so these accomplished performances will delight them.

FANFARE: J. F. Weber