has to be done fairly slowly

Urgh, no! Then it's even more like being gradually suffocated by a big pink duvet. (We may have to agree to differ on this one. ;)

The Ceremony of Carols is gorgeous though -- Cherwell Singers did it for last Christmas's concert. :) This year's concert is "An American Christmas", ie all American composers -- a slightly different selection of carols/arrangements from the usual, plus Lauridsen's 'O Magnum Mysterium' and Whitacre's 'Lux Aurumque'. The latter two are proving a bit of a challenge for my currently baby-reduced lung capacity... :-}