A Robert Shaw Christmas: Angels on High
In this beautifully chosen program of mostly a cappella arrangements,Robert Shawand the Robert Shaw  Chamber Singers deliver the Christmas story in tones of gentle and  moving splendor. The carols and sacred settings recorded here are all  of an intimate sort, and the rapturous, gently expressive realizations  Shaw and his singers give them prove unfailingly appealing.  Particularly moving is the newest work on the disc, a setting of "O magnum mysterium" by the American composerMorten Lauridsen. Franz Biebl's  "Ave Maria" is another gem, as is the arrangement by Healy Willan of  the French carol "What Is This Lovely Fragrance?" The offering includes  a pair of chorales from Bach'sChristmas Oratorioand two wonderful Christmas works by Benjamin Britten: "A Hymn to the Virgin" andA Ceremony of Carols, both well done, even if the sound of  sopranos and altos (rather than boy trebles) in the latter takes some  getting used to.--Ted Libbey