In purist terms, plainchant accompanied by organ harmonisation is an anachronism, and, though still widespread in church, it doesn’t often get an airing on recordings – at least not on a label like Hyperion, with its impeccable early music credentials. So it is bold of the Choir of Westminster Cathedral to begin their newest disc in this way. Then again, the intention is to record their current musical practice at various points of the year, which brings in some old favourites such as Palestrina or Parsons’s Ave Maria alongside music that is less often heard outside its walls: hence the emphasis on some of the choir’s erstwhile directors, notably George Malcolm, who is represented by no fewer than four pieces. It’s a strange mix, to say the least.

Does it work? Well, yes, because the choir is on excellent form and the recorded sound seems perfectly to capture a sense of place, of atmosphere. That’s indefinable and therefore worth hearing. Furthermore, everything is of a piece: the performance of the Renaissance pieces might almost be described as lush, Parsons’s Ave Maria building slowly (some might say ponderously) to its climaxes; yet in the context of the recording this is less rebarbative than it might be. On the other hand, I cannot get on with Malcolm’s music, which has (on this showing) a magpie quality that seldom convinces; and the other contemporary pieces aren’t to my taste either. And yet the recital’s unity of purpose is most convincing, even impressive.