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CDs and MP3s of Church Music

CDs from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk - music that we think is ideally suited to inspire creative thought.

Listed by composer, by performer, for Christmas and for special occasions (weddings, funerals etc.) If you are looking for hymn or carol accompaniment CDs and MP3s, click here.

Note that Amazon now has an excellent MP3 download store (US customers only) at very reasonable prices, and without the messy digital rights management imposed by many digital downloads. Try the search box to the right or go to Amazon MP3 downloads.

CD of the month

   Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis Vol. 4 - Portsmouth Cathedral Choir    Visit store Visit shop
You could be forgiven for not realising the naval town of Portsmouth has a cathedral. In fact it didn't until 1927, but the old parish church was suitably enlarged and now it's a lovely place to sing in, as the choir demonstrates admirably, if perhaps slightly lower in oomph than some. They also give excellent value for money, cramming over 78 minutes onto the CD. As usual with this series there's an excellent mix. Andrewes is a lovely discovery - slap bang between Stanford (opens rather like the Bluebird) and Howells. The big H himself is represented by the excellent E major and the subtly dark B minor. Lassus and Victoria give us a rare chance to hear magnificent renaissance Latin constructs on plainsong, while Weelkes' treble service (which has men's voices too) is interesting, if one of the weaker performances. Shephard's modern setting is suitably haunting. And if Darke in F only means a eucharist setting to you, the canticles are robust and occasionally surprising. The reliable old warhorse here is Stanford's C, which is sympathetically treated, if a bit slow for our liking. A few samples on the Amazon.co.uk site.  

  • Brewer in E flat
  • Andrewes in G
  • Howells in E
  • Lassus Magnificat (Tone IV)
  • Victoria Nunc (Tone III)
  • Stanford in C
  • Weelkes (service for trebles)
  • Darke in F
  • Shephard (Salisbury Service)
  • Howells in B minor
  • Bairstow in D

Don't know where to start?

If you are new to church music, try our CD of the month. Alternatively, consider one of the collection CDs to get a flavour for different composers. One of the best-known pieces ever is Allegri's haunting Miserere. You might also like to try a CD of Byrd's 3 masses for a collection of some of the most perfect music ever written.

Not sure what it's all about? Listen to a couple of clips to get a feel for this remarkable music.

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CDs of Hymns

We now have a separate No Organist page on different ways to accompany hymns from CD to electronic hymnal, including our own superb value accompaniment CDs, and our individual tracks section where you can build your own CD from over 250 hymns and voluntaries, or have tracks emailed direct.

If you want a CD with a popular selection of hymns with singing, particularly for wedding ideas, try these:

In the UK

In the US:

CDs of Wedding music

See our wedding music page for more information on choosing music for a wedding.

In the UK:

In the US:

CDs of Settings

If you're a fan of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, we've some fine recordings in our collections section.

Looking for a particular type of music or a CD with a particular piece on? Drop us an e-mail and we'll try to help. Do let us know also if you can recommend on online resource and we'll add it to our lists.

Copyright © Creativity Unleashed Limited 2006
Last update 18 October 2007

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