Category: Recording

The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips
62:07
+ Dum transisset Sabbatum I & II
Gimell CDGIM 046

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s Peter Phillips readily points out in his programme notes, this is a setting of the mass in which the spotlight is seldom off the virtuosic top line of the choir, and his three superb trebles, Janet Coxwell, Amy Haworth and Emma Walshe are the principal virtue of this new recording. Sounding truly at home in the stratospheric heights in a way which I have not heard female trebles manage in previous recordings, they invest Taverner’s highly idiosyncratic lines with musicality and a radiant power. Cashing in on the complete security of the top line, Peter Philips takes the Mass setting at a more dignified pace than some previous recordings, allowing the true magnificence of Taverner’s polyphony to shine through. The result is probably the most impressive and thoroughly satisfying account of the Mass so far on record, and for those unfamiliar with the sound of high trebles, a truly thrilling experience. The detailed programme note provides a context for the work, although it never mentions the elephant in the room – why the trebles are singing at this stratospheric height in the first place. With the current debate on performance pitch generating more heat than light he is perhaps wise simply to stick to the group’s traditional adherence to the Wulstan doctrine of upward transposition, although listeners deserve to be told that large numbers of musicologists now dismiss the practice entirely, and revelatory performances of this very work at ‘written’ pitch make a powerful case against Wulstan’s theory. So perhaps Taverner never intended his music to sound quite like this, but like the stratospheric and equally fictional Allegri Miserere the results are undeniably thrilling. The CD is rounded off by lush performances of Taverner’s two settings of Dum transisset Sabbatum, a suitably calming episode after the thrills of the Mass.

D. James Ross

[wp-review]

Vocalconsort Berlin, Daniel Reuss
49:06
Accent ACC 24307
+ Angelus ad pastores ait, Ave Maria, Dixit Dominus, Magnificat super aurora lucis rutilat, Quem vidistis pastores & Videntes stellam

[dropcap]L[/dropcap]assus’ extraordinary settings of the thirteen Prophetiæ Sibyllarum belong to the same unsettled and unsettling harmonic sound-world as his tortured Tears of St Peter and a handful of his more troubled madrigals, all the close cousins of the music of Gesualdo. No harmonic progression seems to go in the anticipated direction, and occasionally chords spring from roots which neither prepare for nor build towards them. The results are constantly startling and occasionally disorientating, and constantly challenging to sing. The Vocalconsort of Berlin present performances of such assurance and complete security that it is salutary to recall just how hard this mercurial music is to sing. A perfect balance, utterly secure intonation and a constant inexorable sense of direction make this one of the most impressive recordings I have heard of this repertoire. The Prophetiæ Sibyllarum only make up half a programme, and the Consort add on a group of Christmas motets and the sonorous ten-part Magnificat super aurora lucis rutilat. Even with these bonus tracks the recording lasts for under 50 minutes, and some listeners may regard it as poor value, but bearing in mind the harmonic and intellectual density of the Prophetiæ I certainly didn’t feel short-changed. Anyone unfamiliar with the Prophetiae has a delight in store, and those already acquainted with some of Lassus’ most outlandish compositions will love the consummate professionality of these performances.

D. James Ross

[wp-review]

Laudantes Consort, Guy Janssens
54:09
sonamusica SONA1504
+Agimus tibi gratias, Infelix ego & Parce mihi Domine

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he urbanely elegant polyphony of Cipriano de Rore can sound a little impersonal, but the Mass Doulce Mémoire (based on the melancholy song of that name by de Roré’s French contemporary Pierre Sendrin) shows the suave international master also capable of emotion and passion. A composer whose portraits show an ascetic, gaunt of face and sunken of cheek, and who famously – and perhaps uniquely – failed to be charmed by Venice, is something of an enigma, and his music sometimes seems equally mysterious. The Laudantes Consort under their director Guy Janssens explores this enigma in the Mass Doulce Mémoire and three of de Rore’s most expressive and powerful motets, and generally sympathetic singing and direction provides insights into this intriguing music. If the strong top line masks occasional infelicities in the alto part, resulting perhaps from the mixed sex alto line-up, the overall sound is rich and tuneful. It is nice to see the name of Erik van Nevel, himself a prominent and perceptive conductor of this sort of repertoire, featuring in the bass section of the choir, and a highly readable and informative programme note by the eminent musicologist Ignace Bossuyt ensures that this is a valuable contribution to the enhancement of de Rore’s reputation.

D. James Ross

[wp-review]

Egidius Zwartet & College
157:20 (2 CDs)
Et’cetera KTC1415
Music by Flamingus, Hellinck, de Manchicourt, Mergot de Novo Portu, de Sermisy & anon

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he final 2CD volume in this exemplary series of recordings of music from the superb Leiden Choirbooks presents on the first CD two complete Mass settings by Lupus Hellinck and Pierre de Manchicourt respectively with motets by Johannes Flamingus and Franciscus Mergot de Novo Portu, while the second, perhaps more intriguingly, presents the Mass ‘Philomena’ by Claudin de Sermisy in a liturgical context, which also employs further polyphonic works by Flamingus and Joachimus de Monte from the sixth Leiden Choirbook. Avoiding the frequently recorded works by the established masters which also feature in the choirbooks, the performers have wisely concentrated on music we are unlikely to have heard before by composers whose names are less than household words. What is truly remarkable is the uniformly high quality of the music. The quality of the singing by the Egidius Quartet and College has improved throughout this protracted project, and they present the current programme with considerable authority. The lavish illustrations and the high quality programme notes to which we have become accustomed throughout the series also grace this final volume, leaving listeners with a suitably rich celebration of these remarkable musical volumes.

D. James Ross

[wp-review]