This is a rarity alright. Flemish church music post­Renaissance is virtually unknown these days‚ and there must be few modern listeners who have heard of Frans­Joseph Krafft‚ music director of St Bavo’s Cathedral in Ghent from 1769 until his death in 1795. The two psalm­settings offered here both date from the 1760s‚ and are very much in the style of the day. Krafft is thought to have studied in Italy‚ and in its neatly varied‚ cantata­style mix of orchestrally accompanied choruses and solo arias his music shows off the fashionable mid­18th­century mannerisms he would have learnt there‚ but which are today familiar primarily from the earlier Masses of Haydn. In truth‚ there are none of those Haydnesque moments that would make you sit up and really take notice‚ but this is skilfully written music whose predominant mood is one of politeness and elegant composure‚ laced with the odd well­spun fugue. There are‚ however‚ some moments of southern sentiment and occasional whiffs of Pergolesi in Stabat mater mood‚ for instance in the ‘Auxilium meum’ movement of Levavi oculos meos. The performances by an all­Flemish cast are respectful‚ with Paul Dombrecht avoiding the sensational but generally making all the right gestures and allowing these attractive pieces to speak for themselves. In a fairly resonant church acoustic‚ the professional singers of La Sfera del Canto are well­focused and reasonably incisive‚ while the orchestra shows an overall refinement and polish that are entirely in keeping with the tenor of the music. The soloists are all competent‚ though soprano Greta de Reyghere stands out for the vocal lustre she brings to ‘Ecce non dormitabit’ in Levavi. This may not be a compelling release‚ but if you do shell out for it you will find it hard to dislike.