Some artists decorate the holidays with comfort and joy. Others reinterpret it. Hilgrove Kenrick does something far rarer: he expands the emotional and spiritual scope of Christmastime through choral writing that feels both ancient and startlingly contemporary. His new EP, “Four Songs for Christmastime,” marks the second installment of his growing Four Songs series, offering one of his most evocative and cinematic choral statements to date.
Written for the newly formed choir Aefendreama, co-founded by Kenrick and fellow composer/conductor Chloe May Evan, this suite of compositions was recorded live inside the 900-year-old stone resonance of Leominster Priory. That environment shapes the EP as much as the compositions themselves; every note moves within history’s breath, every harmony expands inside a sacred acoustic frame that few modern recordings dare to explore.
“Winter’s Breath”, a wordless, atmospheric opener driven by close intervals, drifting vocal clusters, and the crystalline high soprano of Sara Brimer-Davey (formerly of The Swingles). The piece immerses listeners instantly into an icy, ethereal soundscape, Kenrick’s signature fusion of filmic atmosphere, choral purity, and spatial experimentation.
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| Hilgrove Kenrick Illuminates the Season with “Four Songs for Christmastime” EP: A Cinematic Choral Portrait Rooted in Tradition and Awe |
The EP also features “Here Is the Man,” a newly commissioned work set to make its debut at the Worcester Cathedral Carol Service on Christmas Eve 2025. Alongside contributions from Evans, including her composition “When They Saw the Star,” the project underscores Aefendreama’s focus on blending deep tradition with new, expressive choral writing. Vocals by the ensemble, organ by Nicholas Freestone, engineering by Hugh Robjohns, and mastering by John Elleson-Hartley contribute to a project that feels meticulously crafted yet profoundly human.
Kenrick’s journey to this point has been anything but linear. Once a Cathedral chorister in Birmingham, later a jazz musician across the West Midlands, he ultimately became an award-winning composer for film, television, and video games. His music has appeared across Netflix, NBC Universal, Freeform/Disney, BBC, Channel 5, Canal+, and more. His score for the feature film “Suicide Club” earned three Best Score awards, and his solo work, including his 2024 album “Fragments Part 1,” featured on BBC Introducing, continues to attract a global audience of millions.
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| Hilgrove Kenrick Illuminates the Season with “Four Songs for Christmastime” EP: A Cinematic Choral Portrait Rooted in Tradition and Awe |
Yet with “Four Songs for Christmastime,” Kenrick returns to his earliest musical language: the choral tradition that shaped him. Partnering with Evans and Aefendreama, he channels that foundation through his cinematic lens, creating choral works that echo with reverence and modern imagination. This EP is not simply a seasonal release; it is a lasting artistic statement, bridging ancient spaces, contemporary composition, and the timeless human instinct to gather, sing, and feel the world expand.
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