With a musical language rooted in complex but stable tonality and an aesthetic that draws heavily on his rural upbringing, Gavin Higgins has carved out a path as a composer whose music engages with hearts as well as minds.

This double CD, featuring two works for French horn and a substantial oratorio on Welsh myth is the perfect introduction to his richly intriguing sound world.

Born in 1983, Higgins grew up in the Forest of Dean, a unique region on the border between England and Wales where nature, local legends and coal mining came to define his childhood. The sounds of the forest, brass bands (Higgins played tenor horn), church choirs and the occasional illegal rave all inspired aspects of his musical language. His 2016 ballet, Dark Arteries, compellingly scored for brass band, was written to commemorate the Miners’ Strike of 1984-85.

The Horn Concerto, written for the brilliant British hornist Ben Goldscheider and premiered last year, is a substantial work in the traditional three movements.

Higgins here makes a link between his love of...