Close harmony singing is the vocal equivalent of a jazz big band, and this programme is the Vasari Singers’ personal tour of a style in which they have excelled for years. Their connection with Ward Swingle and the pioneering Swingle Singers is explored in arrangements ranging from traditional folk songs such as the haunting Danny Boy, to favourites by The Beatles and the delicious harmonies of Stephen Sondheim. George Shearing’s English musical background and American jazz influence combine in his Songs and Sonnets from Shakespeare, and the album closes with a cleverly integrated and up-beat version of Duke Ellington’s classic It don’t mean a thing (if it ain’t got that swing).

The Vasari Singers directed by Jeremy Backhouse is one of the UK’s leading chamber choirs, and has been responsible for some of our most successful choral recordings, their album of Great British Anthems (8572504) being described as ‘essential listening’ by Gramophone. In Gabriel Jackson’s Requiem (8573049), ‘the Vasari Singers grip the work with evident relish and commitment’ as reviewed by BBC Music Magazine. Their choral concert album Heaven Full of Stars (8574179) was also much admired by the American Record Guide: ‘the whole program is mesmerising and the performances are exquisite – perfect intonation, blend, expression, musicality, and sheer beauty of choral sound’.

The Vasari Singers have also gained a significant following with their Christmas releases on Naxos, including the highly successful collection A Winter’s Light (8573030) which appeared back in November 2012, to be joined in October 2023 by Music on Christmas Morning (8574542) which was admired in the American Record Guide as being ‘performed beautifully. The Vasari Singers… produce an excellent traditional British choral sound. The joy the singers radiate is a tribute to Jeremy Backhouse’s spirited direction’.

Jeremy Backhouse is one of Britain’s leading choral conductors, and has been the sole conductor of the internationally renowned chamber choir Vasari Singers since its inception in 1980. Since winning the prestigious Sainsbury’s Choir of the Year competition in 1988, the ensemble has broadcast frequently on BBC Radio and Classic FM, and has recorded a discography of over 30 highly acclaimed albums on EMI, Guild, Signum, Naxos and its own VasariMedia label. In 1995, Backhouse was appointed music director of the Vivace Chorus. Alongside the standard classical works, he has conducted the choir in a vast array of ambitious programmes, including sell-out performances at the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.