Coupled here are Philippe Herreweghe’s two major Purcell recordings: the Funeral Sentences and a selection of full and verse anthems was acclaimed by the American Record Guide for its "clarity and precision of English diction and outstanding choral intonation" combined with "consistently beautiful" solo singing.

Five years later, the maestro directed his virtuoso Collegium Vocale Gent in two highly contrasting glorifications of the art of which Purcell was a supreme master. Whether with the small forces of 'Welcome to all the pleasures' or in the vocal and orchestral pyrotechnics of 'Hail! Bright Cecilia', here is a genuine festival of music.

These titles were released for the first time in 1993 (CD1) and 1998 (CD2) and have not been available for some time.

"His way is refined, the playing of the Collegium Vocale instrumentalists highly polished, full of colours, delicate, yet also with a solidness of sound and technique. The pace is briskish, yet each number seems to have plenty of space in which to weave its charms...alto Robin Blaze and the baritone Peter Harvey who do such a wonderful job in the duet ‘Hark each tree’ near the beginning of the greater and later work, Hail, Bright Cecilia (1692). The way in which they waft the line ‘With leafy wings they flew’ would surely beguile the hardest of hearts. Meanwhile Mark Padmore...investing each syllable with poetic thought, making the most of dynamic contrasts, yet avoiding the sensation of affectation. It’s a stunning performance from him here and in the duet ‘In vain the am’rous flute’... Herreweghe, however, has the edge for me, and furthermore makes a splendid case for the less ambitious 1683 Ode, Welcome to all the Pleasures, which still contains some wonderful things." - Stephen Pettitt *****/***** BBC Music