The Burford Singers can always be relied upon to deliver the goods, and Sunday’s performance was probably the best I’ve heard from them yet. It helped that they had a particularly inspiring programme — Haydn’s glorious Te Deum, written for Empress Marie-Thérèse in 1799, and Beethoven’s Mass in C, with Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto sandwiched between.

The Haydn made a magnificent opener, with the choir displaying their credentials from the first note. Under Brian Kay’s usual authoritative and lucid direction, this was the joyous affair it deserves to be, delivered with energy and obvious enjoyment, with strict attention, as always, being paid to diction, timing and dynamics.

The revelation of the evening was young clarinettist Anna Hashimoto, who gave a proficient, if occasionally tentative, account of the solo line in Mozart’s concerto. She looks less than her 21 years but plays with the technical assurance of someone much older; for physical dexterity, sensible phrasing, tonal warmth and sheer musicality this was a remarkable performance for someone so young. It did, however, seem to lack bite; everything was just a bit too careful and restrained, particularly during the quieter moments of that dreamy Adagio.

Of Beethoven’s Mass in C, a disappointed Prince Nicolaus Esterhazy — who commissioned the work — wrote: “I am not convinced it can ever be performed properly.” Countless performers since, of course, have proved otherwise, and in the hands of the Burford Singers — ably accompanied, as always, by the Cotswold Chamber Orchestra — it was performed more than just ‘properly’. This was a bright, energetic and exhilarating performance, helped along by a fine quartet of soloists. Claire Watkins’s strong, thrilling soprano voice was a particular joy, but there were impressive contributions from mezzo Catherine Hopper, tenor Jeremy Budd and Oxfordshire-based baritone Quentin Hayes.

Look out for the Burford Singers’ special Handel celebration concert on December 5; visit www.burford-singers.org.uk for details.