From start to finish, this is a magical CD. It is beautifully, recorded, arranged and performed.

The three soloists are Eugene O’Hagan, his brother Martin O’Hagan and their childhood friend, David Delargy. All are parish priests from Northern Ireland. The Sony recording company was so convinced by their demo disc that they have signed a three million dollar contract with them, the bulk of which will go to charity.

The men are accompanied by The Choir and Orchestra of The Philharmonic Academy of Rome and The Singers of The Basilica of St Peter in the Vatican. The first track, Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria’, is an indication of the sensitive musical arrangements on the disc, beginning with a gentle harp and single singer, becoming a duet, then a trio, now joined by a magnificent choir and orchestra.

The recording features religious music from Ireland (of course), but also Italy, Germany, England, Wales, Spain and France and includes many well-known works such as Franck’s ‘Panis Angelicus’, movements from Haydn’s ‘Creation’ and Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’, Lloyd Webber’s ‘Pie Jesu’, the French Christmas carol ‘O Holy Night’ and concludes with Sibelius’ ‘Be Still My Soul’.

There is also a sweet rendering of the King’s Singers’ version of ‘The Irish Blessing’ and if the performance of ‘Abide With Me’ doesn’t move you, you’d better check your pulse!

Unless you really can’t stand hymns or any form of classical music, you are certain to be delighted by this outstanding CD. But this beauty is also dangerous, because it is all too easy to be so enraptured by the music that you begin to worship the music itself, instead of the God who created it, or to mistake the enjoyment of the music for experiencing God himself. For many music lovers, the music is close enough to heaven for them to be satisfied with that alone.

Stirring music is wonderful, but it cannot satisfy our longing for knowing God through Jesus Christ. But for those who do belong to Jesus, there is an added dimension to the musical experience, as you lift up your heart to God in some of the heartfelt words of songs like ‘Abide With Me’ and ‘Be Still My Soul’.