Chants, Chestnuts and Other Joyful Noise

These two releases, artfully produced, carefully performed, tastefully put together, are reminders that, for many of us, the Britishness of Christmas is one of its musical charms. Effortless choral blending and specifically mellow instrumental playing put the spotlight on the familiarity and poignancy of the carols and the tunes. Recommendable for tree-trimming; any surprises here are pleasant ones.

Recordings are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good), four stars (excellent).