Hail, true Body, born of Mary: Church Music Society publications

[This] should surely be given pride of place in the choral Top 10, in spite of its brevity and simplicity: one could not imagine a more lovely setting of the Communion hymn, 'Hail true body, born of Mary' than that made by Stanley Vann. To hear this beautiful piece sensitively sung by an upper voice choir, with plentiful shaping of the long phrases and a sympathetic accompaniment, would be ecstasy indeed, and this is all the more remarkable when you consider the simplicity of the texture and the economy of the material. Equally suited to performance by a solo voice, this is a prime example of one of our most distinguished church musicians showing us how to lift the printed words from the page and send them straight to our hearts.