Browsing the back catalogue for fun stuff a few days ago I came across a record of English song featuring Dame Felicity Lott and pianist Graham Johnson.  It’s called Favourite English Songs and was released in 2006 so. at the height of the singer’s interpretative powers and with the voice still in excellent shape.  It’s an interesting mix of the very familiar; Vaughan Williams’ :High Noon” and some of the Britten folk song arrangements for example, and the less familiar with songs by Maude White, Cecil Gibbs and Gerald Tyrwhitt-Wilson among the composers I’ve never heard of.

There’s 63 minutes of quite varied music but none of it is particularly challenging to listen to so it’s quite a relaxing record.  It’s all sung and played quite beautifully with perfect diction and sensitive reading of text.  It’s also very well recorded.  Currently it’s only available in digital form (MP3 and standard res FLAC) and there’s no digital booklet, though with Lott’s diction one doesn’t need the texts.  It’s also extremely inexpensive.

All in all a lovely record from a lovely lady.

Catalogue number: Chandos CHAN6653