Recording of the Fortnight
Classical Music Magazine
Rating: *****

As the liner note suggests, lan Venables’ art songs are firmly in the English lyrical tradition, stretching – and absorbing influences – from Parry to Britten, the music a delicate backdrop to the words. Kennedy’s plangent tone fits ideally the predominant mood of melancholy, while lightening for Flying Crooked and The Hippo. The string quartet confirms Venables’ originality: the gritty vitality of the outer movements straddling a [scherzo] that mingles wit with wistful romanticism.

Phillip Sommerich, June 2010