In the Bleak Midwinter reflects a Christmas that was unlike any other in recent history. Much of the music on this album was heard around the world as part of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, a service that began broadcasting in 1928 and has been broadcast live on Christmas Eve every year since 1931.

But for Christmas Eve 2020, in the face of a global pandemic, this uniquely long-running tradition was interrupted. It was not possible to hold a live service for a congregation in the Chapel or around the world. Instead, a full service, with lessons, carols, organ voluntaries and prayers, was recorded in an empty Chapel with the Choir of King’s College spread out around the stalls. For its millions of listeners, the broadcast meant the continuation of a Christmas tradition in a year when so many were without their friends and family, and without so much of what makes Christmas special.

This album contains music from the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols together with a selection of specially recorded tracks. It marks the beginning of a new era for the Choir of King’s College under the direction of Daniel Hyde, with this his first full album at King’s since his appointment in 2019.

The Choir of King’s College, Cambridge 
Matthew Martin – organ 
Directed by Daniel Hyde