A cordial welcome is deserved by E. J. Moeran's Six Poems (Joseph Williams, 4s.), for voice and piano, set to the verses of Seumas O'Sullivan. The verses themselves are precisely of the kind to invite sensitive and imaginative music, and one could scarcely wish for anything more apt than Moeran's response to this invitation. It is true that his own individuality becomes subdued at times, and appears at variable strength, but this is patently the outcome of a desire fully to preserve the simplicity of the words. Thus the first song, Evening, can strike one as belonging to the world of folk-song at its best, rather than the realm of Moeran's personal style, yet the result is so beautiful that one could hardly wish the case to be altered. The personal note is altogether stronger in Moeran's very remarkable setting of The Herdsman. This reflective, poignant song strikes to great depth, and can be worthily compared with the finest since the time of Peter Warlock. The Six Poems as a whole are to be cherished by all who recognise the richness of Moeran's inventiveness, and ought on no account to be missed by others who have yet to make a full acquaintance with the art of this outstanding composer. The songs are wholly reasonable in their demands on executants, but require, of course, an interpretation which does justice to Moeran's sensitivity.

taken from Penguin Music Magazine
Volume III (1947) P.59