James Gilchrist

“[Gilchrist] is now unsurpassed among lyric tenors in sweetness and technical security, and for his musical intelligence” The Independent

“Repeated hearings may harm the artful simplicity of the title cycle by Alec Roth, but the Britten folk-song settings should never die. If Gilchrist’s French is too muscular overall, he tiptoes delicately through the final song by Marcel Tournier.” The Times, 8th August 2008 ***

“James Gilchrist is one of the most expressive tenors of the day, his timbre soft-grained, his diction immaculate, his lack of mannerism gratifying and his choice of repertory, on this disc of songs and song cycles with harp, interesting.” Sunday Times, 10th August 2008 ***

“…an interesting and intelligent singer, well served by his distinguished accompanists.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2008 ****

“Richard Hickox's command of the score...banishes once and for all the idea that the work was a mere appendix to the composer's operatic career: its pacifist theme was a central one to Britten's creative being, and he invested the opera with all the musical richness and textural originality of an unrivalled master of the medium, best expressed here in the playing of the City of London Sinfonia, which is wonderfully alive.” The Telegraph, 14th June 2008

“This excellent recording by Hickox and the City of London Sinfonia conjures shimmering life into oft-ignored episodes of brilliant musical characterisation. The stand-out in a first-class cast is James Gilchrist's Lechmere, full of eager innocence, loyalty and vim.” The Times, 14th June 2008 ****

“Hickox and his cast make the strongest possible case for the opera: Peter Coleman-Wright’s eloquent, idealistic Owen might seem mature casting, but there are fine cameos from Alan Opie (Owen’s tutor), Robin Leggate (the General) and James Gilchrist (Lechmere). Pamela Helen Stephen’s Kate is not as bitchy as Janet Baker’s, Elizabeth Connell’s Miss Wingrave not quite as formidable as Sylvia Fisher’s strident, domineering portrait, but both sing well.” Sunday Times, 8th June 2008

“Hickox's excellent cast boasts some supreme exponents. Hickox draws haunting colours and chordings from his City of London Sinfonia, and the recording is flawlessly presented.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2008 ****

“The new set… becomes the first recording in any medium to do the work full musical and dramatic justice. It should also satisfy the curiosity of those who wonder why its devotees hail Wingrave as Britten's greatest completed opera.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2008

“With his clear, even tone, unaffected sensitivity to the text and eloquent phrasing of Finzi's long, floating melodies, James Gilchrist again proves an ideally sympathetic interpreter of the composer. David Hill draws supple, fine-textured playing from the Bournemouth orchestra and, crucially, never allows Finzi's music to meander.” The Telegraph, 26th April 2008

“Competition on disc, for this solo cantata, is strong. But James Gilchrist's performance, if not quite as lyrically unbuttoned as the classic EMI recording by Wilfred Brown with the composer's son conducting, is perfectly judged, while David Hill's moulding of the opening string Intrada sets the tone exactly. The rest of the disc is made up of odds and ends. The Prelude for string orchestra is all that survives of Finzi's plan to compose a chamber symphony, while The Fall of the Leaf was to be the central panel of an orchestral triptych. Farewell to Arms, a pair of settings of 17th-century poems, neatly complements the Traherne, and Gilchrist treats them with as much care.” The Guardian, 25th April 2008 ****

“James Gilchrist's singing is guided by a refined (yet passionate) sensibility, just right for Finzi, and his voice has substantial reserves of resonance and power.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2008

“As so often, Finzi's word-setting is wonderful - a gift to any singer with a feeling for words as well as notes. James Gilchrist plainly enjoys both aspects of this work. His phrasing is typically musical and he points key syllables with great care.” BBC Music Magazine, June 2008 ****

“Richard Hickox directs his crack period forces in a strong, sympathetic performance, glowingly recorded. Among rival conductors, Nikolaus Harnoncourt (Elatus) uncovers more disquiet in, say, the Kyrie. But Hickox's pacing and shaping are always convincing, not least in the monumental - and potentially interminable - fugues of the Gloria and Credo. The chorus blaze with white-hot intensity in Schubert's many fff climaxes, while the soloists sing with tenderness and grace in the Benedictus and the ravishing "Et incarnatus est".” The Telegraph, 19th April 2008

“Few period bands have tackled this late, great work, and it comes up gleaming in the care of Collegium Musicum 90 under Richard Hickox's direction. Hickox's soloists are superb, too.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2008 ****

“Turn to Hickox and you'll hear how this heavenly music should sound, with the three soloists (Mark Padmore, James Gilchrist - an ideally matched tenor pairing - and soprano Susan Gritton) singing with pure tone and wondering tenderness.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2008

“Once again, Gardiner’s Monteverdi Choir is the jewel in the crown of each cantata performance. Add to that Gardiner’s dramatic, electric response to music he clearly loves and you have a set that rivals his Gramophone Record of the Year Award-winning disc that launched this amazing series.” (Gramophone)

“The programme on this CD concluded John Eliot Gardiner's Bach Cantata Pilgrimage. The earliest piece is Tritt auf die Glaubens-bahn, BWV 152… Gardiner captures its intimacy and tenderness, and is outstandingly well served by Gillian Keith in her aria with recorder, viola d'amore and continuo. This is pure magic to my ears...” BBC Music Magazine, February 2008 *****

“Gilchrist's bright, ringing tenor voice is compelling from the first note, but it's the range of expression and unaffected musicality that leave the lasting impression” BBC Music Magazine

“Once again, Gardiner’s Monteverdi Choir is the jewel in the crown of each cantata performance. Add to that Gardiner’s dramatic, electric response to music he clearly loves and you have a set that rivals his Gramophone Record of the Year Award winning disc that launched this incredible series.” (James Jolly, Editor’s Choice, Gramophone)