The Out of Silence Choir was born during the Arts Council of England's Year of the Artist 2000 when musician Sally Brown stumbled across three 17 th century songbooks in the library of the National Trust's Belton House in Lincolnshire The inspiration to bring those forgotten songs ‘out of silence' came from the tiny inscription, ‘Madam, I desire you to here me', (sic) scrawled in spidery hand-writing on the opening page of Lady Anne Mason's hand-written songbook of 1667. It is as if the author were calling out to the future, asking for the music to be heard. From the start, the aim was to enter into a dialogue with history, not only researching lost stories and songs but also writing new music to draw the listener in to the spirit of a time and a place, connecting to feeling and atmosphere in a way that only music can.

This CD is a live recording of selected songs from the song-cycle, ‘Sackcloth & Silk', created for three historic sites owned by the National Trust in central England. It is an extraordinary collection of glorious, unaccompanied songs, giving voice to the long forgotten Dukes of Clumber House, the paupers of The Workhouse at Southwell, and the Vernons of Sudbury Hall.

The choir works ‘by ear' in the traditional way, without written music, and, for many of the singers, this was their first experience of either singing or choirs. They have come a long way together. These songs are a tribute to their unfailing good humour, enthusiasm, hard work and unwavering belief in the value of this project.