The Choir of St John's College, Cambridge

The Choir have enjoyed a fruitful relationship with Chandos Records for over two years now, since our first release of a Herbert Howells recording in 2009. We are now thrilled to be launching our fifth disc on the label of music by Mozart.

The centrepiece of the disc is surely his 'Coronation' Mass in C major which is supported by a smaller scale Missa Brevis in F (K192), a couple of church sonatas, his well-known setting of Ave verum corpus. The recording features a top team of soloists with Susan Gritton and Frances Bourne being joined by two former Choral Scholars, Sam Furness and George Humphreys. Gritton also headlines the CD with her performance of the dramatic solo cantata Exsultate, jubilate.

The recording itself took place in July and the Choir are accompanied by the College's own period instrument ensemble, St John's Sinfonia, made up of the top professional players and led by Margaret Faultless who is also the College's Musician in Residence. The recording was made in the Ante-Chapel, at period pitch (A=430) and tuned to Valotti temperament.