New Richard Allain CD with Merton College Chapel Choir, directed by Benjamin Nicholas (85-94), features: Alexander Little (04-15) and Finlay McEwen (12-14)

The CD, which was released in September 2018, was awarded five stars by the BBC Music Magazine, who write:

‘These beautifully shaped performances by a finely constituted and fearless mixed choir, offer a convincing array of colour, texture and dynamics. The sound is rich and full, allowed to breathe in an ideal acoustic’.

‘Richard Allain’ is the second disc of choral music to appear on the Delphian label, and features the stunning choral world of our Director of Music, Richard Allain, performed by The Choir of Merton College, Oxford, under Benjamin Nicholas.

In addition to his role as Director of Music at Norwich School, Richard is a talented composer whose works encompass a wide range of styles, including music theatre, instrumental pieces, sacred choral music, song writing and works for children. Such is his versatility, that he has been commissioned to write music for BBC Radio 2, 3 and 4 and has worked with many of the country’s leading choirs and musicians. This latest CD is a collection of solely choral music.

Benjamin Nicholas was a chorister at Norwich Cathedral. After leaving Norwich School, Benjamin went on to hold organ scholarships at Chichester Cathedral, Lincoln College, Oxford and St Paul's Cathedral and is now Director of Music at Merton College, and recently became Principal Conductor of the Oxford Bach Choir.

The CD also features Alex Little on the organ, who too was a chorister at Norwich Cathedral. He is currently the Assistant Organist at Merton College and is in his first year studying for an MPhil in Music. He features on several tracks including The Norwich Service, as setting of the evening canticles composed for Norwich Cathedral Choir. Alex is one of two organ scholars at the college, and is responsible for much of the playing in the college chapel. He has accompanied the college choir on BBC Radio 3 and has featured on other recordings on the Delphian label. In 2017, Alex won the prestigious Sawyer/Durrant Prize and the Doris Wookey Prize for the second highest marks in the Associate of the Royal College of Organists examination.

ON Finn McEwen, lends his musical talent to the CD in the form of a soprano saxophone performance on a setting of Advent Antiphon. He was the winner of the Norfolk Young Musician competition in 2013 and went on to study at the Guildhall School of Music in London after leaving Norwich School.