Elgar - The Dream of Gerontius
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vasily Petrenko
Royal Albert Hall, London

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'The Philharmonia Chorus, ranged across the top of the platform, was superb in diction, sonority, accuracy and engagement. Their soft singing had a tangible presence despite their great distance from most of the audience. They made an infernal bunch of demons, encouraged by their impish Lord of Misrule, Petrenko. The conductor paced his tension-filled approach to "Praise to the Holiest in the height" so that it burst forth in splendour, and then cued every subsequent choral entry with a stab to the relevant section, each one in the coda growing ever more fervent. Such rousing singing, playing, and conducting, not least from the mighty RAH organ (Richard Pearce in the loft) led to one of those "we don't know if we should clap here but some of us really want to" from some audience members.'
Roy Westbrook, www.bachtrack.com, 8 April 2022

Walton - Belshazzar's Feast
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vasily Petrenko
Royal Albert Hall, London

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The Philharmonia Chorus sounded as if they were relishing every note.
Jessica Duchen, The Arts Desk, 22 September 2021

The Philharmonia Chorus, at full strength, seemed thoroughly delighted, whether they were impersonating wailing Hebrews or decadent Babylonians.
Neil Fisher, The Times, 22 September 2021

This concert was so gloriously enjoyable, it is hard to know where to begin. Gavin Carr is an admirable chorusmaster and Osbert Sitwell's words (selected from the Books of Daniel, Psalms and Revelation) were beautifully articulated.
Jack Buckley, Seen and Heard International, 23 September 2021

The Philharmonia Chorus mustered 112. Apparently, Petrenko felt they needed some help at the Royal Albert Hall, so microphones were dotted across the platform. The effect was startling, with the voices disconcertingly pushed right to the front of the sound. While this undoubtedly enhanced the choir, it also made them very exposed. There was nowhere to hide, so it's to their credit that they sang so well, telling of the downfall of Babylon with exciting verve and crystal-clear diction.
Stephen Pritchard, The Observer, 25 September 2021

Handel - Messiah
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Eduardo Strausser
Royal Albert Hall, London

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The chorus were in bright, bouncy voice, crisp and very far from woolly in All we, like sheep
Neil Fisher - The Times, 16 December 2020

Berlioz - Grande Messe des Morts
Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by John Nelson
St Paul's Cathedral, London - Erato DVD

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Four hundred performers shake the pillars of St Paul's Cathedral and set the dome ringing in this immense live recording which blazes with hell-fire and brimstone.
Alexandra Coghlan, The Spectator, 2 May 2020

Mahler - Symphony No.2 'Resurrection'
Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Jakub Hrůša
Royal Festival Hall, London, 20 February 2020

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Then the pianissimo choral entry with the Resurrection Ode - has it ever sounded more mystical?
David Nice, The Arts Desk, 21 February 2020

...the Mahlerian chorus starts unaccompanied, in an almost imperceptible pianissimo which builds slowly to the massive organ-laden climax. Hrůša and the rapt orchestral players carried us with them with impeccable dynamic control.
David Karlin, www.bachtrack.com, 21 February 2020

The chorus was as fine as the orchestra, the almost inaudible entrance stopping time. Good for Hrůša to give the clarion choral call of 'Bereite dich' space, an expansive gesture that led to a simply glowing 'Aufsteh'n'.
Colin Clarke, Seen and Heard International, 22 February 2020

The first entry of the chorus - on such a diminished pianissimo - was ravishing, audible enough, but one almost had to strain to hear them. The chorus were magnificent, even cataclysmic, the clarity of the diction almost irrelevant given the sheer scale of its climax.
Marc Bridle, Opera Today, 23 February 2020

The fabulous Philharmonia Chorus
Ian Skelly, BBC Radio 3, 21 February 2020

Handel - Messiah
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Christoph Altstaedt
Royal Albert Hall, London, 18 December 2019

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The Philharmonia Chorus is in wonderful voice and fills the vast hall with beautiful and balanced sound. "For Unto Us A Son Is Born" is suitably bright, lively and optimistic. With excellent diction and huge amounts of energy, the performance of the chorus is the standout of the evening. The sheer size of the Royal Albert Hall can present the most accomplished performers with a challenge, but the Philharmonia Chorus really rose to the occasion. Overall a beautifully engaging and festive evening.
Aliya Al-Hassan, broadwayworld.com, 19 December 2019

Altstaedt's tempos were on the fast side, and he certainly took no prisoners, yet his performers, both soloists and choir, we well up to the task and throughout the evening we had some admirably fleet passage work. In the early 1980s, I worked with a veteran choral conductor in Edinburgh who commented that the overall timing of Messiah could be gauged from the speed at which the choir could sing the semi-quaver passages. In the case of the wonderfully admirable Philharmonia Chorus that seemed to be at whatever speed Altstaedt wanted, and they sang with a nice lightness and unanimity too. Conductor Christoph Altstaedt clearly relished having a large chorus which could give him both fluidity and speed (with impressively light and fast passage-work), but also weight and drama.
Robert Hugill, Opera Today, 19 December 2019