The title “Nordic Light” aptly describes this collection, for there is a luminosity that suffuses these songs – and the singing of them – from the Nordic countries, principally Denmark. Beautiful as they are, however, there is none the less a lack of variety over the disc when played right through (Saturday night, by Otto Mortensen – 1907-86 – and the Rautavaara are exceptions), making the exclusion of items more modern in outlook – a motet or two by Holmboe or Nystedt, for instance – regrettable. Mortensen’s folk-song arrangement It was a Saturday evening may surprise British ears, since it sounds very close to the popular hymn We plough the fields and scatter, and the four songs of Svend Schultz (b.1913) are pretty enough but the programme as a whole lacks bite. There is a decidedly nineteenth-century air to the disc, even though eight of the composers here worked mainly after 1900.
Parkman is no stranger to this repertoire; indeed he has recorded the lovely Stenhammar songs (c1890) before, on Musica Sveciae. These, and those by Lange-Muller, are also available from Timothy Salter and the Ionian Singers (USK). The Danish Radio choir have a wonderful sense of ensemble and a winning glow to their sound – particularly noticeable in Rautavaara’s Summer night. Here, without seeming to hurry, the Danes shave half a minute off their Finnish rivals on Ondine, who sound artificial and sluggish by comparison. Overall though, this collection remains marvellously sung musical wallpaper.'