Britten's sparkling cantata depicting the life of St Nicolas is the full work on your free cover CD this month.
Written for amateur musicians and completed in 1948, St Nicolas employs a dazzling array of colours and textures thanks to its unusual scoring: choir, tenor soloist, strings, piano duet, organ and percussion. It is, said the novelist EM Forster, 'one of those triumphs outside the rules of art which only the great artist can achieve.'
The BBC Singers are joined by tenor Daniel Norman, the choristers of St Paul's Cathedral and the BBC Concert Orchestra for this performance conducted by Paul Brough.
Plus your free CD includes Howell's moving Carol-Anthems: 'A Spotless Rose', 'Sing Lullaby' and 'Here is the Little Door', while the Christmas magazine, on sale Thursday 26 November, is packed with features for the festive season. Click here to find out more.
Audio clip: Britten: St Nicolas – 'Nicolas and the Pickled Boys'
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