It is largely due to the discerning advocacy of Stephen Layton and Polyphony that the choral music of Eric Whitacre (b1970) has enjoyed such a meteoric success in the UK in recent years. Several of the items on their “Cloudburst” disc (Hyperion, 4/06) are also included in this equally polished release.

Stylistically Whitacre takes up where Vaughan Williams left off (Three Shakespearean Songs), mixed with a dose of Holst’s triadic shifting block chords and nods to Stanford (The Bluebird), Tavener, Pärt et al. He is an unashamed tonalist who relishes fluidity and smoothness in his melodic lines which, while not particularly memorable in a Rutteresque way, lie easily on the ear.

The fresh-sounding Toronto-based Elora Festival Singers obviously love this optimistic and transparently honest music. Their blend is superb, with strong – almost reedy – bass notes supporting the organic clusters which blossom regularly. Tuning is always spot-on and Noel Edison draws a wide dynamic range from his singers. Climaxes are never coarse and the church acoustic is used to sublime effect.

Shorter pieces, such as This Marriage, Lux aurumque and Little Birds, are perfect miniatures. The latter features some atmospheric whistling and vocalising. Some commentators have criticised Whitacre for being too repetitive in his longer pieces. However, I for one found his 13-minute treatment of When David Heard to be perfectly formed and fulfilling, and consider Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine (rather atypical of his usual style) to be a masterpiece. This stimulating and superb disc is a bargain and an absolute “must have”.