The Northumbria-based composer’s collection of choral music Uncertain Sea: Joyful Company of Singers / Broadbent (Métier CD) ★★★★ shows that his ability to conjure up the area’s atmospheric land and seascapes is undiminished. There are 14 pieces composed between 1990 and 2024 which set texts ranging from seventh century Northumbrian cow herder and versifier Caedmon  – the inspiration for ‘Caedmon’s Hymn’ (2021) – to contemporary poet Katrina Porteous, who has written about the Northumbrian fishing community, via Donne, Burns, and Manley Hopkins. Their variety shows Casken’s versatility from the cantata ‘Memorial’, a setting of Casken’s own texts for two soloists, two percussionists and chorus, to Burns’ paean to love ‘Ae Fond Kiss’ and its immortal couplet, “Naething could resist my Nancy; But to see her was to love her”. The choir, conducted by Peter Broadbent, is excellent and the sound is warm, resonant yet clear.