The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir with their conductor Tõnu Kaljuste appeared at the rather spectacular (and very large) St. Paul’s Basilica last night as part of Sounstream’s 2023/24 season.  The programme was largely made up of works to liturgical or scriptural texts by Palestrina and Pårt.  It was gorgeous polyphony, beautifully sung but in which any sense of the text was largely lost.  It also all inhabited a very similar sound world.  Even towards the end of the concert when a little variety crept in it was surprisingly little.  One might expect a 21st century work setting H.P. Lovecraft to sound more dramatic or abrasive than a 16th century setting of “Ave Maria” but Omar Daniels new piece Antarktos Monodies, despite having a few interesting touches, was much of a piece with the music that surrounded it.

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