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Reviews (5)


AllMusic

2020

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James Manheim

2020

"The "sacred veil" described in the poetry here is the line between the worlds of birth and death, and the texts of this choral song cycle by Charles Anthony Silvestri describe the cancer death of Silvestri's wife, Julie, in harrowing detail in a series of 12 pieces ... Whitacre's music is quietly tragic, and it brings his collaborator's personal agony into the realm of the universal implied by the title. The performances by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, under Whitacre's direction, are superb, and the sound, from California's Musco Center for the Arts, is exemplary".


MusicWeb international

2023 July

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Stephen Barber (musikanmelder)

2023 July

"The main work here is The Sacred Veil, an extended choral work in twelve parts, which commemorates the death of Julie, the wife of Whitacre's collaborator, the poet and historian Charles Anthony Silvestri ... The whole harrowing story constitutes a kind of secular requiem. As well as the voices, there are parts for a cello and a piano ... The music is in Whitacre's familiar idiom, beautiful and euphonious and well-written for voices ... As well as The Sacred Veil, the disc contains four other works, placed at the beginning ... The performances, by Voces8 and conducted by the composer, are exemplary ... Whitacre's fans will want this; others might prefer his shorter works".


BBC music magazine

2020 November

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Claire Jackson

2020 November

"The text was co-written by Whitacre and Charles Anthony Silvestri, whose wife Julie died of ovarian cancer at 36 in 2005. There is a pseudo-liturgical feel which recalls something of Karl Jenkins's work, intensified by the subsequent call for prayers taken from Julie's blog and a closing benediction".


BBC music magazine

2023 June

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Kate Wakeling

2023 June

"Choral & song choice: VOCES8's gorgeous sound, impeccable ensemble and intense responsiveness to text, harmony and melodic shape is all of the highest quality ... When Whitacre deploys a touch more harmonic bite, his work is richly rewarding and could not hope for better advocates than VOCES8".


The gramophone

2023 July

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Malcolm Riley

2023 July

"For fans of Eric Whitacre's velvety cushions of vocal balm ... Voces8's new disc will bring a sense of welcome familiarity and contentment ... Under the composer's gentle direction, this generously filled recording will undoubtedly achieve widespread acclaim, and deservedly so. Voces8 are the perfect match for this repertory, with a first-rate recording capturing their trademark acoustic 'halo'".