The perhaps idle thought struck me that there is something faintly incongruous in a Joyful Company of Singers electing to perform such un-joyful works as the austere Prieres de Saint Francois and the bitterly melancholic Soir de neige (written in wartime occupied France) ; but in fact the latter, at least, is sung with considerably greater assurance, accuracy of chording and expressive tonal gradations than the Exultate Deo, which is less tidy and does not convey the jubilation of the words to the same extent as some rival performances. The singers really live up to their name only in the last of the Christmas motets, 'Hodie Christus natus est'. Elsewhere, several starts of phrases needed to be more securely poised - the opening of 'Quem vidistis', for example, the basses at the start of La figure humaine, soprano entries in 'O magnum mysterium' and other pieces; blend of voices within individual lines reveals occasional flaws; and precision of placing in 'Marie' (the sixth of the Chansons) is a bit shaky. No, recordings of all these shorter choral works of Poulenc's constitute a fiercely competitive field, and alongside such as The Sixteen, the choirs of Winchester or Westminster cathedrals, or the Monteverdi Choir, it has to be said that in vocal quality and technique the present group is outclassed: La figure humaine obviously taxes it to its limits. Its virtues - exemplary clarity of enunciation, intelligent phrasing, meaningful coloration of words, tonal shadings and convincing French (save for the men's difficulty with the French 'u' vowel in words like 'puissant') - are not quite enough to meet the opposition.'