FRANÇOIS PANTILLON (b.1928): Daphne for Mixed Choir and Piano, Le Noël des Bergers for Soprano, Mixed Choir and Organ, Rêverie and Le rêve d'Adélaïde for Piano, 7 Interludes and Prélude for Piano, A Cappela Choruses: Chanson pour elle, 3 rondeaux, Chanson ingénue, Une croix, Lass den Schatten fallen, Automne, Mitten in der Nacht, Là-basa sur la mer, L'oiseau de la rivière, Les horologers, Le petit cordonnier, Le Poirier, Petit mercier, La Menterie, Jean, p'tit Jean, Depuis la Citadelle jusqu'à La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Description: Sixteen brief partsongs for a cappella choir, with very brief solo piano interludes and two longer piano pieces, make up the bulk of this disc. Pantillon's vocabulary is tonal and Romantic; the choral pieces could easily hail from the late 19th century or have their origin in (high quality) hymn tunes (two are in fact harmonisations of traditional tunes). Predominantly pastoral and reflective, or in easy-going bucolic mood with a few moments of heightened drama, these are attractive works, setting a wide variety of texts. The two cantatas, one with piano accompaniment, the other with organ, occupy more modern territory, with suggestions of French Impressionism, Poulenc, Alain, Duruflé, neoclassical Stravinsky and a touch of Eisler or Orff - so nothing terribly 'progressive', but all very well-crafted and effective, especially the reverent, sacred mood of 'Nöel of the shepherds'. French-English texts. Christa Goetze (soprano), Bertrand Roulet, Marc Pantillon (piano), Philippe Laubscher (organ), Ensemble vocal de Berne; François Pantillon.