There Was a Child

"[Rodgers and Spence are] unashamedly emotional and soul-baring, the lion's share falls to the choruses, with radiant contributions from the CBSO's various youth affiliates...There Was a Child is a major addition to the choral repertoire. Easy on the ear as well as uplifting, it deserves to be taken up by orchestras and choral societies on both sides of the Atlantic." Financial Times, 4th August 2012 *****

"This is a live recording of an astonishingly assured performance...One might have preferred a less operatic voice than that of Joan Rodgers in this work, but this fine singer's performance is nonethless a most affecting one. Toby Spence has more to do, and he is ardent and passionate." International Record Review, September 2012

"The recording itself is very fine, although I would prefer a greater depth and presence to the bass. This is a large soundstage, with excellent front-to-back perspective. Full texts are provided, and the liner-notes also include a brief but articulate note by the composer. As stated at the beginning of this review, this is a significant work, one of the most important works I have heard in the last decade. I was very touched by the music and the performance. Signum is to be thanked for taking the initiative to record this performance."
(MusicWeb International)

Jonathan Dove wrote 'There Was a Child' as a tribute to a friend's son who died tragically young. Filled with both joyous celebration and heartfelt emotion, it's a big, warm-hearted modern masterpiece in the spirit of Britten and Vaughan Williams - following in an evergreen English tradition and featuring the combined forces of the CBSO and CBSO Chorus, Youth Chorus and Junior Chorus with soloists Joan Rodgers and Toby Spence.