Of course, the King's boys do a wonderful job overall, with only an occasional loss of ensemble focus--Patrick Hadley's lovely I sing of a maiden is just not quite rhythmically together, but the singers rescue it with an exquisitely tender final chord. The ensemble and solo work in Fauré's Messe Basse is first-rate, and this very attractive yet relatively rarely performed "low Mass" (it's usually assigned to a filler role on recordings of the composer's infinitely more popular Requiem) is a highlight of the disc. So is the final work, Sigfrid Karg-Elert's strange but affecting Dritte Sinfonische Kanzone, a 10-minute piece that opens with an extended organ solo, somehow adds a violin at just the right moment, then follows with the choir, which pulls everything together in a satisfying conclusion.

Now, the only problem here is that no texts are provided--only very brief descriptions of the works--so all we know about this last, unusual composition is that it's "based upon the intonation of a Gregorian creed." We're also given a tantalizing tidbit regarding the subject of Ireland's Ex ore innocentium--it "sets a poem about Christ's love" and was written for children--but we miss its full meaning without any printed text or translation. Not that there wasn't enough room: the final two pages of the booklet contain a color photograph of the choir and mostly blank space. In situations like this, where information important to a listener's (especially someone new to the repertoire) appreciation for and understanding of the music is left out, I always wonder what the thinking was behind the decision. Is someone at the label assuming that everyone already knows this music so well they don't need the texts? Do they think no one cares about the words? If they do, they're wrong on both counts. After all, this is choral music; it has words, and we do care about them whether we're novices or experienced listeners. [10/22/2004]