Grace Williams’s most ambitious work, the Missa Cambrensis, was composed in 1968-71 when the Welsh composer was in her mid-sixties. The premiere was imperfect and as a consequence the work vanished until the mid-2010s. This present recording, made in BBC Hoddinott Hall, reveals the true glories of Williams’s inspiration, in a work which interpolates within a large-scale Latin Mass setting, William’s own Welsh carol, Carol Naidog, exquisitely sung here by Côr Heol y March from the Vale of Glamorgan, and the spoken text (in Welsh) of the Beatitudes, with former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams in the role of narrator. Partington is an ideal interpreter who draws the best from his vocal and orchestral forces. The Welsh connection is powerful and BBC NOW and the superb BBC NOW Chorus clearly express ownership of this music in their committed rendering. Apart from one or two works, Williams’s output has been too long neglected and this admirable release from Lyrita will do much to contribute to the present revival of her music.

★★★★★