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Fanfare

As my colleague David DeBoor Canfield already reviewed this disc (titled How Great Our Joy!) in detail in the preceding issue, I can afford to be brief here. This is a collection of 15 pieces that Cooman penned between 2004 and 2018 that employ melodies from various Christmas carols and hymns. Several are well known (Greensleeves, Veni Emmanuel, In dulci jubilo, O du fröhliche, Es ist ein Ros, Resonet in laudibus, Adeste fideles), but others are obscure (the Triptych on a Sorbian Carol draws on a piece from the region in eastern Germany where the organ utilized in this recording is lo­cated).

In all instances Cooman’s treatment of his thematic materials provides a clear statement of the melody early on, followed by piquant, imaginative reworkings that keep the tune recognizable while taking it far afield as well. Particularly attractive to me are the quiet, intimate pieces—O Sleep, Dear Holy Baby and the Three Pastorales on a German Carol (Resonet in laudibus) come most immedi­ately to mind—but all are well done, with the Fantasy on “Adeste fideles” bringing everything to a rousing close. As always, Erik Simmons is an exemplary performer, and the recorded sound captures the Sonnenorgel of Pfarrkirche St. Peter und Paul in Gorlitz, Germany (accessed via the Hauptwerk system) very well indeed. This is just the sort of thing that is needed to break the monotony of hearing the same old Christmas tunes trotted out in the same old unimaginative manner. Make this a 2020 stocking stuffer for your music-loving friends; cheerily recommended.

—James A Altena

@divineartrecordingsgroup

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