With the Abbey this year celebrating the 900th anniversary of the monks’ arrival at Tewkesbury‚ it is a good time for the School Choir to make their contribution to this excellent series. Several favourites fall to their share‚ notably While shepherds watched with a stunning descant by Willcocks‚ and O worship the king‚ the tune of which has been variously ascribed to Tallis‚ Handel and Croft. Theirs‚ too‚ is Addison’s The spacious firmament on high (‘Soon as the shades of night prevail/Fred Hoyle takes up the wondrous tale’ my Cambridge supervisor used to murmur‚ but that was c1950 and the allusion may now be lost). Stand up! Stand up for Jesus is there also‚ the scarcely repeatable story of its birth being related in the booklet notes‚ which add that having enjoyed success in America the hymn ‘soon became popular in England’ (though not in my particular part of it‚ I think). The choir sing this with great enthusiasm‚ which perhaps owes something to the fact that they are embarking on a tour of the United States this year. They sing splendidly‚ the boys with a distinctively bright tone‚ the men with plenty of body and a well­controlled blend of voices. They have several chances to show how well they sing unaccompanied‚ especially in chorale tunes where the shading is a delight. Formidable‚ too‚ is the breadth of their phrasing – try it with them‚ but have aids for resuscitation at hand or the consequences may be grave. Organ accompaniments‚ booklet notes‚ balance and quality of recorded sound‚ all admirably play their part and supply further reason to bless the day the monks came to Tewkesbury.