In a land where scythe-wielding grim reapers are only too happy to cut down artistic tall poppies, it is marvellous to see groups like the Adelaide Chamber Singers flourishing, and better still celebrating their 30th anniversary.

Doubtless, this is in no small measure due to the vision and dedication of the group’s Founder and Artistic Director, Carl Crossin. In this anniversary celebration (and the group’s seventh disc) we are treated to a well sung, but eclectic programme that reflects the singers’ particular expertise in early and contemporary music.

Opening with the flamboyant Deus in Adiutorium by Mexican baroque maestro Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla, the singers immediately impress with their rhythmic acuity and their fine sense of vocal and textural clarity. Such qualities are also evident in their accounts of the other early pieces on offer: Palestrina’s classic motet, Sicut Cervus (together with its lesser-known second part, Sitivit Anima Mea) and Monteverdi’s heartfelt lament from his sixth book of madrigals, Dunque Amate Reliquie.

Moving into the sphere of contemporary compositions, the ACS has commissioned a number of Australian works for its anniversary season. Anne Cawrse’s How Can I Keep From Singing is suitably celebratory whilst In the Bleak Mid-Winter Snow by Philip Hall...