Whitbourn: Annelies

This recording is incredible! The exquisite singing and musicianship can be heard in every track of the the record. The Westminster Williamson Voices and the Lincoln Trio were two perfect ensembles for recording this important piece of music. The excellence of these two world class ensembles, along with the spectacular clarinet playing of Bharat Chandra, can be heard throughout the entire CD. Arianna Zukermann, daughter of the famous violinist Pinchas Zukerman has a remarkable voice and sang the role of Anne passionately. The recording of this chamber piece is phenomenal because the collaboration of these artists was under James Jordan's direction. Annelies is a perfect example of James Whitbourne's skill, expertise, and compositional prowess. I highly recommend this album.

The composer James Whitbourn, in a recent interview on WWFM, said something along the lines of “The Holocaust isn’t just a piece of Jewish History. It’s a piece of HUMAN history.” Anne Frank’s diary has long held a place on middle and high school reading lists—not out of obligation, but because it DESERVES to. And it deserves this heart-wrenchingly beautiful musical interpretation just as much, if not more. Most choral recordings are edited (or one could say “perfected”) rather intensely in post-production, but this one is a diamond in the rough. Whitbourn himself oversaw and produced the recording, and it pays off in full—we can hear the piece’s inspirations directly, through the performers’ every articulation. This is a recording which revels in its ever-so-slight imperfections… because it wouldn’t be so directly communicative if it didn’t. Please, listen to this recording… and then share it. Because it needs to be heard.

You can feel the purity of her soul. A child who did nothing but be born as a Jew against the harsh anti jewish reality of a German hysteria and a Holland that sold her and her family out.

One would be hard-pressed to find a more stiring recording this year. Whitbourn is a highly-accomplished choral composer and this is far and away the most assured work I've heard from him.