A package which initially appears modest, yet is most generous in spirit. Dowding has previously set the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud to music, and now, in development with the charity Musical Keys, he's turned to the work of Alice Oswald for his debut with Alati. The writing and arrangements are very much in service to the text. In that spirit, Dowding's own horn playing is often restrained, his very breath as much part of the accompaniment as the notes he plays, so intimate is the recording. O'Brien's piano is likewise melodic, focusing mainly on chordal support for the lyrics and Beraha's voice. Beraha, of course, has a voice that could sing the very birds from the trees, but here she largely flows with the melody, the silences as potent as her lusher expression. She is often subtly nuanced, as on her gentle riffing around the word ‘birdsong’ on the opening ‘Birdsong for Two Voices’.

As if this wasn't enough, you can buy the CD along with a booklet of the poems, illustrated by Morris English. Oswald's poems alone would be a bonus, but the booklet also includes the music for the songs, allowing you to ‘try your own versions of the songs’ as Dowding explains.

In a world of complexity and noisy attention grabbing, Ascending the Morning, with its words, music and artwork in gentle harmony is a welcome gift.