It was inevitable that a ripe choral warhorse such as Carmina Burana should now be worthy of a reassessment in terms of ‘authentic’ performance, 1937-style, that is. Jos van Immerseel commands a cohort of 115 musicians, including the 38 singers of Collegium Vocale Gent, the boys’ choir Cantate Domino and his Anima Eterna orchestra of Bruges, the latter a relatively small band, with fewer desks of strings than in a full symphony orchestra, thereby allowing him to focus on Orff’s highly colourful writing for wind and percussion. The strings play on gut strings, which immediately imparts a much more rustic quality to the sound. The flutes’ flutter-tonguing has never been caught so vividly on disc and the hiccuping principal bassoon lurches about with an enchanting freedom.

Soprano Yeree Suh soars beautifully throughout and tenor Yves Saelens’s interpretation of the spit-roasted swan is graceful and articulate. However, it lacks something of Andrew Kennedy’s ‘seering lyricism’, as I termed it in my review of the LPO recording, for which this role cries out. Congratulations, though, to the baritone, Thomas Bauer, who savours every moment of his multifaceted part, whether as the gruff boozer, the unbuttoned lech or the falsetto’d eunuch. The main chorus is on tip-top form; crisp, full-blooded and beautifully blended singing and, despite being leaner in numbers, still able to pack a punch. Only in extremis do they struggle within the audio mix to cut through the full fortissimo might of the brass and percussion.

Despite the slightly vague sound of the boys’ chorus, this naturalistic, primitive interpretation is a resounding success. Van Immerseel and his musicians have a winner here with this sparkling new release.