FRASER-SIMSON: THE MAID OF THE MOUNTAINS Janis Kelly - soprano Christopher Maltman - baritone Michael George - bass Richard Suart - baritone Sally Burgess - mezzo-soprano Donald Maxwell - bass The New London Light Opera Chorus The New London Orchestra Ronald Corp Hyperion Records, CDA67190 Full Price

Any show that managed a run of 1,352 performances must be worth at least an occasional revival. This affectionate rendition of The Maid of the Mountains from Hyperion amply demonstrates that such a prolific success was more than a sign of the times.

A swashbuckling flight of romance it might have been, but the coaxing warmth of the New London Orchestra under the baton of Ronald Corp, combined with the charismatic New London Light Opera Chorus, shows that Harold Fraser-Simson's score has pathos and subtlety. Not that he'd have admitted to it, however, since by all accounts he was the embodiment of English understatement, placing music fourth after shooting, fishing and tennis in his Who's Who profile. (He was also a decorated soldier.)

With an appropriately British all-star line-up, much like a Sunday black and white matinee, the piece swings from tristesse to ribaldry with unselfconscious sentimentality. I found this rather moving; after all, just think of the resonance that the following chorus must have had for British servicemen in 1916:

Sing hey! Sing ho!
Take no thought for the morrow!
Sing ho! Sing hey!
Live, just live for today!

The secret of its success, the show's bristling optimism, nevertheless shirks any such trepidation in a succession of ready tunes, stirring dialogue and high melodrama. Taking the frivolity quite seriously, the artists involved do great things, making the most of melodic lines with a fine quality of tone, whilst really letting go with texts that call for nothing less:

Yes, that partly explains
Why I blew out his brains,
And then threw his remains in the river.

Conceived during the darkest hours of the Great War as an opportunity for all to escape the worst excesses of humanity, this charming and delightfully performed recording should provide many with a welcome release from the traditional family Christmas.

Crispin Woodhead