In Celebration of the Human Voice - The Essential Musical Instrument

Early Music Choral Recordings

Much of the earliest music was composed for the unaccompanied voice reaching a peak during the Renaissance when there was flowering of talented European composers. Many of these composers were true musical geniuses and whose work is still vibrant and relevant today. We offer here a far ranging collection of these works performed by the top vocal ensembles from both Europe and the US.

Displaying 1-50 of 120 items.

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England Be Glad

Alamire : Henry's Music

Review: Alamire won the British Library contract to record the soundtrack for their 2009 exhibition celebrating 500 years since the coronation of Henry VIII. 'Henry's Music' includes a world premiere recording of the contents of MS Royal 11.e.xi (a royal choirbook gifted to King Henry in around 1518), which is to produced in full-colour facsimile by the Folio Society, and tribute motets by Robert Fayrfax, Philippe Verdelot, and John Taverner. Alamire is joined by the cornet and sackbutt ensemble QuintEssential and gothic harpist Andrew Lawerence-King.

Songlist: O Christe Jesu, pastor bone, King's Pavan, England be glad, Consort XII, Madame d'amours, Tandernaken, Salve radix, Psallite felices, Sub tuum presidium, Quam pulcra est, Hec est preclarum, Beati omnes, Consort XIII, O my heart, Helas madame, Though some saith, Nil majus superi vident, Consort VIII, Adieu madame, En vray amoure, Lauda vivi alpha et oo

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Afflicti spirti mei

Alamire : Madrigals For A Tudor King - Verdelot

Review: Philippe Verdelot was the most important composer of Italian madrigals in the early 16th century and recognized as the greatest innovator of the genre. A Frenchman, he occupied several important musical posts in Italy, including the Florentine posts of maestro di cappella at the Baptistry of S. Maria del Fiore and the great Duomo itself. In the mid 1520s, during his time in Florence, a set of part-books were assembled, probably under Verdelot's supervision, for the court of Henry VIII. Most, if not all, of the works were composed by Verdelot. This is the first recording of the complete madrigals in the collection, which stands not only as the most exceptional of diplomatic musical gifts but is also an important source for the history of the early madrigal.

Songlist: Italia mia bench' el parlar', Con l'angelico riso, Quanto sia lieto il girono, Lasso, che se creduto, O dolce nocte, Madonna qual certeca, Afflicti spirti mei, Dentr' al mio cor', Quando nascesti, Amore?, Piove da li occhi, Pur troppo, donna, I vostri acuti dardi, Chi non fa prove, amore, Leit' e madonna et io pur, Con lacrim' et sospir' negando porge, Donna, se fera stella, Ognun si duol' d'amore, Altro non e el mio amor', Madonna io v'amo e taccio, Si suave e l'inghanno, Se ben' li occhi, Cortese alma gentile, Quanta doleca amore, Donna che sete fra le donne belle, La bella donna, Deh, quant' e dolc' amor, Donna leggiadr' et bella, Madonna, per voi ardo, Amor, io sento l'alma, Ultimi mei sospiri

Alamire : These Distracted Times - Thomas Tompkins

Review: The political intrigue of the early 17th century culminated with the execution of Charles I in 1649 and the beginning of the Commonwealth led by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Thomas Tomkins, the greatest composer of that age, wrote a pavan for 'these distracted times' shortly after the King's execution. This CD provides a mixture of Tomkin's church and chamber music that soothed troubled souls during these turbulent years. The recording was made in the chapel of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where Cromwell was a student and where his severed head remains.

Songlist: Pavan I, Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, Hear my prayer, O Lord, The heavens declare, Te Deum, A Fancy, Jubilate, O Lord, how manifold, Pavan VII, I heard a voice from heaven, Magnificat, Pavan 'for these distracted times', Nunc dimittis, Pavan VIII, Remember me, O Lord, When David heard, My help cometh from the Lord

Anonymous 4 : A Mass For The End Of Time

Review: This must be how the angels sound! That is the often evoked response of listeners to this exemplary quartet who explore, research, and bring to life medieval polyphony and chant. The blend of voices and virtuosity of creation is unparalleled by any other singers on earth. Once again, by research, the 4 have created a mass, this time "A Mass For The End Of Time." The end of time refers to the Last Judgement which is most strongly expressed in the liturgies of the Advent season, the Requiem mass, and the feast of Jesus's Ascension celebrated forty days after Easter. This work is based on the Ordinary and Proper chants of the Ascension mass with added tropes (newly written text and music) to enhance the feel of the music. Historically, the approach to the first millennium saw the collapse of Charlemagne's empire and alliances which yielded a tremendously unsettled period in European history. The church under the charismatic leadership of Pope Sylvester II created a spiritual anchor. Great cathedrals were begun and Christianity was seen as a primary civilizing influence. Musically, the traditional Roman plainchant was being renewed and greatly enlarged while developments in music such as staff line notation allowed these new creations to be rapidly learned and disseminated. Though the church provided a dynamic anchor, it also tended to foster a millennial belief in the end of time and that the Last Judgement was at hand. From this milieu, Anonymous 4 has recreated another incredibly beautiful liturgical testament.

Songlist: Judicii Signum, Quem Creditis Super Astra/Viri Galilei, Celestis Terrestrisque, Prudentia Prudentium, Dominus in Sina, Ascendens Cristus, Salavator Mundi/Rex Omnipotens Die Hodierna, Elevatus Est Rex Fortis/Viri Galilei, Ante Secula, Omnipotens Eterne, Corpus Quod Nunc/Psallite Domino, Apocalypse 21:1-5, Regnantum Sempiterna, Cives Celestis Patrie

Anonymous 4 : An English Ladymass

Review: Here is a record to dispel the old myth that chant and early polyphony are really uniquely the province of male voices, men and boys. It is often forgotten that communities of nuns, within the walls of their enclosure, sang exactly the same liturgical repertoire as the monks, their male counterparts. Individual names of female singers do, in fact, emerge from time to time: the noble Blesilla in the fourth century, for example, commended by St Jerome for her excellent singing of the Alleluia, or Abbess Hildegard in the twelfth century, who composed ravishingly beautiful hymns and sequences. In our own century we have some good recordings of nuns' choirs, Argentan in Normandy is one, and St Cecilia's, on the Isle of Wight, another. But this disc represents something quite new: here is a professional all-female vocal quartet uniquely devoted to the performance of chant and early polyphony. Anonymous 4, whose very title recalls the authorship of a famous medieval music treatise, have brought to the early-music scene a new approach and a refreshingly new sound. They sing with clean, unpretentious voices a programme of music that follows the basic structure of the Lady Mass, once so popular in England. They fill it out with a well-chosen selection of thirteenth- and fourteenth-century pieces in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary: chants and polyphonic items, mainly in Latin, but including two items in the vernacular, namely the charming early strophic song Edi beo thu and the gentle sequence Jesu Christes milde moder. There is a captivating simplicity and directness about their performance, which naturally avoids many of the pitfalls of an overstretched attempt at reconstruction.

Songlist: Prosa: Gaude virgo salutata (chant), Polyphonic song: Edi beo thu hevene quene, Introit: Salve mater redemptoris/ Salve lux langentium/ Salve sine spina/, Salve sancta parens, Motet: Lux polis refulgens/ Lux et gloria, Kyrie: Kyria christifera, Gloria, Motet: Spiritus et alme/ Gaude virgo salutata, Song: Miro genere, Gradual: Benedicta et venerabilis, Alleluia: Alme iam ad gaudia/ Alme matris dei/ Alleluya per te dei, Sequence: Missus Gabriel de celis, Prosa: Gaude virgo gratiosa (chant), Polyphonic song: Salve virgo virginum, Offertory: Felix namque (chant), Sanctus and Benedictus, Sequence/Song: Jesu Cristes milde moder, Agnus dei: Virtute numinis, Communion: Beata viscera (chant and song), Rondellus: Flos regalis, Chant setting: Ite missa est, Hymn: Ave maria stella

Ars Nova : Portuguese Polyphony

Review: Portugal was historically by no means isolated from the mainstream of European culture, although the earlier periods of Portuguese polyphony may be relatively little known. There were, nevertheless, monastic and ecclesiastical connections with other parts of Europe, and, of course, with Rome, while the proximity of Spain, most evident in the golden age of Portuguese polyphony, ensured that Portugal was part of the wider European tradition of polyphony. The vocal group Ars Nova is one of the most distinguished chamber choirs in Scandinavia in the field of early and new music. The twelve singers of the choir and the director Bo Holten have produced a series of internationally acclaimed compact discs and have given more than 650 concerts and broadcasts in Scandinavia, the rest of Europe, Israel and Japan.

Songlist: Lamentatio, Magnificat secundi toni, Audivi vocem de caelo, Pater peccavi, Vidi aquam, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, Agnus Dei, Commissa mea pavesco, Beata viscera, Circumdederunt me, Clamabat autem mulier

Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo De Silos : Christmas Chants

Review: The Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo De Silos became famous outside of religious circles in the mid-'90s when a recording of their liturgical Gregorian chants unexpectedly climbed to the top of U.S. pop charts. The Benedictine Monks have released several successful albums of their monophonic chants and have helped bring joy of mediaeval plainsong to a new and larger audience. This is a very well recorded CD of top notch quality.

Songlist: Prayers. Rorate Celi desuper. Mode I, Antiphon. O Sapientia. Mode II, Introit. Gaudete in Domino semper and Psalm 84, 1. Mode I, Hymn. Christe, redemptor omnium. Mode I, Invitational Antiphon. Christus natus est nobis and Psalm 94, 1-2. Mode IV, First Lesson of Maitins, acc. to Isaiah 9, 1-6. Primo tempore., Hymn. A solis ortus cardine. Mode III, Antiphon. Quem vidistis, pastores? Mode II, Antiphon. Facta est cumm Angelo. Mode VII, Communion. Liturgia mozarabe. Gustate et videte. Mode II, Antiphon. Rubum quem viderat and Magnificat. Mode IV, Alleluia. Dies sanctificatus. Mode II, Communion. Viderunt omnes. Mode I, Canticle. Puer natus in Bethlehem. Mode I, Canticle. Adeste fideles. Mode VI, Introit. Dominus dixit and Psalm 2, 1. Mode II, Introit. Puer natus est nobis and Psalm 97, 1. Mod VII, Gradual. Omnes de Saba. Mode V, Antiphon. Alma Redemptoris Mater. Mode V, Hymn. Panis angelicus. Mode IV, Invitational Antiphon. Christum Regem. Mode IV, Hymn. Adoro te devote. Mode V, Hymn. Te decet laus. Mode II, Antiphon. Laudemus Dominum and Psalm 116. Mode II, Canticle. Ave verum. Mode VI

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Gaude Maria

Boston Camerata : Mediaevel Christmas

Review: This recortding is one of several in the highly successfule series of Christmas recordings from this fine ensemble. The music on this collection spans seven centuries (12th to 19th) and offers a wide and diverse range of compositions. Director Joel Cohen opens with a Hebrew cantillation of "Isaiah's Prophecy" of the comming of the Messiah, moves on to a 10th-century Spanish setting of a sibylline prophecy, and then takes us to 12th-century Provence with "Adest Pronsus". The performances are always stylish and captivating.... a treasure and essential to your collection.

Songlist: Isiah's Prophecy, The Sybil's Prohecy - Iudicii Signum, Conductis - Adest Sponsus, Clausula - Oiet, Virgines, Hymn - Domino, Lauda - Conditor Alme Siderum, Reading - Verbum Caro Factum, Organum - On Frymae Was Word, Reading - Ludea Et Iberusalem, Hymn - Gedonis Area, Sacred Song - O Maria, Feu MAire, Prosa - Ave Maria, Responsory - Gaude MAria, Hymn - Joseph, Liber Nefe Min, Conductus With Refrain - Congaudes Hodie, in Dulci Jubilo, Hymn - In Dulci Jubilo, Reading - Hand By We Shule Us Take, Conductus - Lux Hodie.. Orientis Partibus

Cambridge Singers : Byrd: Motets and Anthems

Review: This recording presents a selection of fifteen of the 150 or so Latin motets and three of the dozens of English anthems that, between them, form the greater part of the life's work of William Byrd (1543-1623), the greatest English composer of his era. The chosen motets and anthems represent just some of the many facets of Byrd's sacred music, now recognized after three centuries of neglect as among the most glorious every written for choir.

Songlist: Sing Joyfully, Turn our captivity, Praise our Lord, all ye Gentiles, Emendemus in Melius, Siderum Rector, Plorans plorabit, Visita, quaesumus Domine, Attollite portas, Laudibus in Sanctis, Gaudeamus omnes, Ave Verum Corpus, Veni, Sancte Spiritus, Christus resurgens, Solve iubente Deo, O Magnum Mysterium, Non vos relinquam, O quam suavis, Justorum animae

Capella Gregoriana : Gregorian Christmas

Review: Not technically Gregorian, because of some polyphony this recording is predominantly chant, but there are times when the selections move to motets, the natural outgrowth of chant, being simultaneous independent plain songs as it were, combined to form a melodious and rhythmic whole much as partner songs do. As for the Christmas feel, it is certainly reverent and soothing. Highly recommended, this is an excellent budget album.

Songlist: Introitus: Puer natus est nobis, Kyrie: Kyrie eleison, Gloria: Gloria in excelsis Deo, Psalmus 112: Laudate pueri, Offertorium: Tui sunt caeli, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Communio: Viderunt omnes, Magnificat anuma mea Dominum, Hymnus: A solis ortus cardine, Introitus: Salve sancta Parens, Halleluja: Multifarie, Communio: Exulta filia Sion / Psalm 45, Magnificat anima mea Dominum

Cappella Alamire : Music of The Modes

Review: Early Music (UK) proclaimed, "This is a feast indeed." Ockeghem created music of incomparable spiritual purity and technical perfection. These three masses clearly identify one of the three greatest masters of the Flemish High Renaissance. Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Capella Alamire was formed for the purpose of exploring the repertoire of the Renaissance. The Capella is a 13-voice ensemble, whose members include musicians both amateur and professional.

Songlist: Missa Sine nomine a 5, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Missa Cuiusvis toni a 4, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Missa Fors seulement a 5, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo

Cappella Alamire : The Early Josquin

Review: Audio magazine (USA) called this "an utterly delightful disc." Unusual melodies, surprising harmonies, unexpected uses of word painting and other expressive techniques, great craft and clarity of purpose distinguish these works, believed to have been written during Josquin's mysterious early years. Includes several world premiere recordings.

Songlist: Magnificat, Missa L'ami baudechon, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Credo Sine nomine, Credo Sine nomine (canonic), Credo De tous biens playne

Cappella Nova : Miracles of St Kentiger

Review: The seventh recording from Cappella Nova, this disc of Scottish Medieval plainsong celebrates Glasgow's 6th-century patron saint, Kentigern (or Mungo), in wonderful music and poetry from the 13th-century Sprouston Breviary. This material was clearly centuries old before the monks wrote it down in the 1200s, and it is full of Celtic romance and colour. The most important part is the sequence of nine lectiones which relate to the miracles of St Kentigern. Cappella Nova has used singers, bells and clarsach (Celtic harp) to weave a magical tapestry of sound for the telling of these, literally, fabulous tales.

Songlist: from First Vesers for the Feast of St Kentigern, -Responsorium In septentrionali, from Matins for the Feast of St Kentigern, -Invitatorium Celestis regem patrie & Venite, -Collect for St Kentigern, -Lectio I Preclarus Dei confessor Kentegernus, -Responsorium I Christi miles Kentegernus, -Lectio II Nam a primeva, -Responsorium II Mirantes pavent emuli, -Lectio III Erat igitur, -Responsorium III Qui elixas condiebat, -Lectio IV Supradicti vero refectorii, -Responsorium IV Olim fete archam Dei, -Lectio V Illi autem excitati, -Responsorium V Cultro lupi exaratus, -Lectio VI Nec mirum, dilectissimi fratres, -Responsorium VI Crudi moris rex infaustas, -Lectio VII Cocum autem Sancti Servani, -Responsorium VII Aporia ingruente, -Lectio VIII Sanctus igitur Servanus, -Responsorium VIII Cudenti in ferugine, -Lectio IX Redivivus autem cocus, -Responsorium IX Jubente Petrus Domino & Prosa Gens Cambrina, from First Vespers for the Feast of St Kentigern, -Antiphona Alme presul Kentigerne & Maginificat, from Second Vespers for the Feast of St Kentigern, -Antiphona O paradoxe pontifex

Cardinall's Musick : The Byrd Edition Vol 1

Review: The Byrd Edition is a long-term project that is one of the most comprehensive ever undertaken in the early music field: some 20 CDs that will cover the complete works of William Byrd. The music will be freshly edited and sources re-examined by David Skinner. The Cardinall's Musick under Andrew Carwood has gained a formidable reputation in bringing the neglected masterworks of the English Renaissance to a wider public. These have included the festal Masses of Ludford and the complete works of Fayrfax, the excellence of which was recognized by the winning of a prestigious Gramophone Award. The whole project is divided between the Latin Church Music, the Secular Songs and Consort Music, and the English Church Music. Volume 1 is the first of the Latin Church Music discs, which provides a chronological survey of Byrd's surviving Latin motets to the Cantiones Sacrae of 1591, interspersed with a liturgical survey of the Gradualia. Thus this first CD includes the Gradualia propers for Lady Mass in Advent, the Lamentations, the exquisite penitential motet Peccavi super numerum and the great 9-part psalm setting for men's voices Domine quis habitabit.

Songlist: Domine Quis Habitabit, Omni Tempore Benedic Deum, Christe Redemptor Omnium, Sermone Blando, Miserere, Ne Perdas cum Impiis, De Lamentatione Jeremiae Prophetae, Rorate Caeli, Tollite Portas / Ave Maria, Ecce Virgo, Alma Redemptoris Mater, Christe qui lux es (a5), Christe qui lux es (a4), Sanctus, Audivi Vocem de Caelo, Vide Dominum Quoniam Tribulor, Peccavi Super Numerum

CardinallÕs Musick : Allegri: Miserere & the Music of Rome

Review: The Cardinall's Musick finished 2010 in a blaze of glory with their Gramophone Recording of the Year award for the last volume of their Byrd Edition. Only the second time in thirty years that an Early Music recording has received this prestigious accolade, it is a fitting tribute to the soaring artistry of the group and their director, Andrew Carwood. Their eagerly-awaited next disc features music from late sixteenth-century Rome and ranges from Allegri's Miserere, surely the best-known and best-loved work of this period, to a rarely-performed or recorded oddity. Seven Roman musicians came together (or were brought together) to write a Mass-setting where they each contributed different sections. The resulting work, the twelve-voice Missa Cantantibus organis, is a tribute both to Cecilia (the patron saint of music) and to Palestrina. The seven composers each take themes found in Palestrina's motet of the same name and use them as the starting point for their new compositions. Palestrina himself is among the seven, with Giovanni Andrea Dragoni, Ruggiero Giovannelli, Curzio Mancini, Prospero Santini, Francesco Soriano and Annibale Stabile being the other six. All seven composers were prominent maestri in Rome and most appear to have had contact with Palestrina either as choristers or pupils.

Songlist: Salve regina, Kyrie eleison (Missa Cantatibus organis), Christie eleison, Kyrie eleison, Gloria, Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Qui tollis peccata mundi, Credo, Crucifixus, Et ascendit in caelum, Et in Spiritum Sanctum, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, De lamentatione Jeremiae prophetae, Miserere mei, Deus, Incipit lamentatio Jeremiae prophetae, Cantantibus organis, Gustate et videte

Chanticleer : Cristobal de Morales

Review: Cristobal de Morales is usually mentioned along with Francisco Guerrero and Tomas Luis de Victoria as the trio of Spanish composers who typified 16th-century Spanish church polyphony. The Missa Mille regretz is based on the famous chanson of the same name by Josquin des Prez, and proved to be a favorite work of Charles V. This recording conveys the deep spiritual feeling behind these liturgical settings - another bull's-eye for this splendid ensemble.

Songlist: Vidi aquam, Mille regretz, Mille regretz: Kyrie, Mille regretz: Gloria, O Sacrum Convivium, Mille regretz: Credo, Emendemus in melius, Mille regretz: Sanctus, Mille regretz: Agnus Dei, Lamentabatur Jacob

Chanticleer : Music For A Hidden Chapel

Review: William Byrd and his teacher, Thomas Tallis, were inarguably the greatest composers of Elizabethan England. The primary vehicle for royally-sanctioned musicians of the court was liturgical, and in the court of Elizabeth that would mean settings for Anglican services. However, Byrd was a committed Catholic who nonetheless wrote these masses, motets and antiphons for published volumes titled "Gradualia," volumes I and II. This insurgent act apparently went uncensured, and it is these a cappella works that Chanticleer has recorded here. Given that they would not be performed publicly in a church setting by a large choir, the arrangements are intimate. They are each in the same mode and clef, which therefore creates a mood unbroken, a continuity of feeling that is quietly moving.

Songlist: In tempore Paschali, Regina Caeli, In Assumptione Beatae Mariae, Ave Regina Caelorum, Salve Regina

Chanticleer : Purcell - Evening Prayer

Review: The Bay Area's acclaimed 12-man vocal ensemble celebrates the release of their 27th recording, collaborating with the dynamic instrument ensemble Capriccio Stravagante, directed by Skip Sempe. Henry Purcell (1659-95), son of a Royal musician, wrote beautiful, expressive church music, from the ecstatic to the sublime. Eight songs, from a lovely 8-minute opening cut, "Rejoice in the Lord alway" and the jubilant "I was glad," written for James II's coronation, to the short, deeply moving "Hear My Prayer, O Lord" and the 16-minute final cut, "My heart is inditing," Purcell's grandest composition for the church. The perfect accompaniment of Capriccio fits perfectly with Chanticleer's flawless singing. "Evening" is inspirational and pleasing on many levels. Beautiful, extensive liner notes.

Songlist: Rejoice in the Lord alway ('The Bell Anthem'), Remember not, Lord, our offences, I was glad, O Lord, rebuke me not, Praise the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, Now that the sun hath veiled his light ('An Evening Hymn')-, Hear my prayer, O Lord, My heart is inditing

Choir of King's College, Cambridge : Gregorian Chant

Review: The listener trying to get a basic grip on what medieval plainchant was all about could not ask for a better introduction than this release. The Choir of King's College, Cambridge gets back to its roots, so to speak, performing chants that could have been heard at the college's chapel half a millennium ago. With the chapel's magnificent acoustics as a backdrop, the album takes listeners through the series of decisions choristers would have made concerning what to sing. Those decisions began with the liturgical year, which called for specific chants corresponding to specific days in the cycle. "In this recording," writes John Milsom in his admirably clear and informative liner notes, "the annual cycle has been stopped at two points," both of them days connected with the birth of the Virgin Mary. A mass from one day and a Vespers service from the other are included. Some of the chants contain tropes that place them in their specific time and place. Both are presented more or less complete, with the connective tissue of text-bearing chants retained along with the big ornate pieces; Milsom compares focusing exclusively on the latter to cutting the illuminated initial letters out of a medieval manuscript. For most listeners, he points out, the experience of hearing chant is akin to that of strolling into a museum and looking at an illuminated manuscript; one experiences a richly colored, ornate thing that carries mystery associated with extreme age and remoteness in each case. But we get to the real mystery by trying to penetrate it a bit, and this recording is an ideal aid. Those who experience chant in a more mystical way will likewise benefit from this album; director Stephen Cleobury's tempos are deliberate, and he pulls back from time to time to let the sound of the choristers reverberate around the chapel.

Songlist: Mass For The Octave Of The Nativity Of The Blessed Virgin Mary, First Vespers For The Nativity Of The Blessed Virgin Mary

Choir of King's College, Cambridge : Orlando Gibbons - Tudor Church Music

Review: Orlando Gibbons began his association with Kings College, Cambridge as a chorister under the direction of his eldest brother from 1596 to 1598. His talent was such that by the age of 21 he was sharing the duties as an organist. In 1623 he accepted the additional appointment as organist at Westminster Abbey; but he died suddenly just 2 years later. He was not a prolific composer, but his works include many masterpieces some of which are on this disc. One of his most outstanding verse anthems is: "This is the record of John". It is recorded on this disc by the Kings College Choir featuring Michael Chance as the countertenor soloist; and few have ever performed this as well as Chance. His tone quality, his diction, his emotional investment in the music goes way beyond other renditions. Another bright spot in this group of pieces is the verse anthem: "See, see, the word is incarnate" featuring the choir with a group of outstanding soloists: Paul Smy (boy soprano); Chance, Jones (altos); Daniels, Rivers (tenors);Finley (bass).Some of the other selections are: anthems: "A Mighty and Everlasting God"; "Lift up your heads". The London Early Music group does much of the accompanying. The Choir with its boy sopranos and male altos are dictionally perfect and so enjoyable to hear.

Songlist: Almighty and Everlasting God, Magnificat, Voluntary, Nunc Dimittis, Fantasia for Double Organ, Magnificat, Now Shall the Praises of the Lord be Sung, Nunc Dimittis, This Is The Record of John, O Lord of Hosts, O Thou, The Central Orb, A Song of Joy Unto the Lord We Sing, See, see, The Word is Incarnate, Come Kiss Me With Those Lips of Thine, Lift Up Your Heads, Fantasia, Hosanna To The Son of David

Clerks' Group : Dufay

Review: This is the third disc recorded by The Clerks' Group for their Signum Records trilogy. The series explores repertoire in the medieval period and culminates with a selection of works by Guillaume Dufay, found in one of the great anthologies of 15th century music: the manuscript Bologna, Civico Museo Bibliografico Musicale, MS Q15 (or "Q15" as it is known by its friends).The Q15 manuscript contains examples of almost every conceivable musical genre of the period by a vast array of composers. The Clerks' Group has chosen to perform works by a single composer, but still the variety of forms and styles on offer is bewildering. Guillaume Dufay was a composer who witnessed and contributed to most of the revolutionary changes to occur in music composition in the 15th century. The album includes some of the earlier works so often neglected from Dufay's repertoire, and goes on to explore compositions that demonstrate this revolutionary genius. Some compositional techniques celebrated by The Clerks' Group's performance include the playful exchange of Dufay's song-like melodies between the vocal lines; and the use of mensural canon, where the same melody is sung by all voices but at slightly different speeds. These are just a few examples of the radical nature of Dufay's music as demonstrated on this recording. The Clerks' Group brings immense diversity to the music and its performance. Their refreshing approach displays sincere empathy and passion for this astonishing repertory.

Songlist: Vasilissa, ergo gaude, Kyrie Fons bonitatis, O beate Sebastiane, Gloria (Bol. Q15 no. 107), O gemma, lux et speculum, Credo (Bol. Q15 no. 108), Supremum est mortalibus, Sanctus & Benedictus (Bol. Q15 no. 104), Inclita stella maris, Agnus Dei (Bol. Q15 no. 105), Gloria "Spiritus et alme", O sancte Sebastiane

Clerks' Group : Guillaume de Machaut and Music from the Ivrea Codex

Review: The Clerks' Group is a highly sophisticated ensemble of young singers whose immaculately polished performances show Machaut's extraordinary lyrical gift - even in the genre of the motet, so often thought of as abstract and unapproachable. Edward Wickham clearly views Machaut as a medieval romantic, drawing out the finely wrought lines and wallowing in the luscious sonorities of his music; and the effect is enhanced by a resonant acoustic, though the recorded sound is somewhat over-glossy. Each singer has a naturally light, straight-toned voice and can effortlessly flat over the vocal lines like 'a feather on the breath of God'. The highlights of this disc are three motets by Machaut based on love songs in performances which sound every bit as poetic and expressive as 18th-century Lieder; and the rapturous Marian motet Felix virgo / Inviolata genitrix, in which the group's intimately veiled sound is especially apt. Alongside the Machaut works are a handful of anonymous motets from the Ivrea Codex, a major 14th-century source containing some fine compositions, if never quite matching Machaut's genius. With the caveat that a few motets go a long way, this is a truly haunting collection.

Songlist: Sanctus: Sanans fragilia, Kyrie, Gloria: Et versus homo, Dame/Fins cuers doulz, Trop plus est bele/Biayte paree de valour, Lasse!/Se j'aim mon loyal ami, Credo, Tu qui gregem/Plange, regni respublica, Christe qui lux/Veni creator spiritus, Felix virgo/Inviolata genitrix, Amours/Faus samblant, Post missarum sollempnia/Postmisse modulamina, Sanctus, Clap, clap / Sus Robin, Qui es promesse / Ha! Fortune, Martyrum / Diligenter inquiramus

Clerks' Group : Ockeghem Requiem

Review: Here is the climactic fourth release in the Ockeghem series of which two volumes have been final Gramophone Award Nominations.The Requiem is specially released to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Ockeghem's death. This extraordinarily moving work is coupled with the first CD recording of the beautiful Missa Fors Seulement, reflecting the fluid and diverse style of his late masterpieces.

Songlist: Missa Fors Seulement: Kyrie, Gloria, Cedo, Fors Seulement, Fors Seulement, Du tout Plongiet/ fors Seulement, Requiem: Introitus, Kyrie, Graduale, Tactus, Offertorium

Collegium Regale : Vox in Rama - Giaches de Wert

Review: The Flemish-born Giaches de Wert was one of many foreigners to dominate the Italian music scene in the mid to late sixteenth century, therefore to this day his music is largely unknown to many. It is the second of three books of Motets which appears on this disc, written when his skill as a madrigalist had reached its height. As part of the Kings College Choir, the choral scholars of Collegium Regale perform independently of the choir, singing a repertoire that encompasses 15th Century sacred music, jazz, folksongs and pop. Directed by Kings College's and the BBC Singerâs renowned director Stephen Cleobury.

Songlist: O Crux Ave Spes Unica, Providebam Dominum, Hoc Es Praeceptum Meum, Benedicta Sit Sancta Trinitas, Hora Est Iam Nos, Hoc Enim Sentite In Vobis, Gaudete In Domino, Obsecro Vos Fratres, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Angelicus Domini Astitit, Amen, Amen Dico Vobis, Domine, Tu Es Qui Fecisti, Vox In Rama

Female Voices of Oxford Camerata : Let Voices Resound

Review: Just the fabulous treble voices of the Oxford Camerata sing the important 16th century collection of Finnish songs known as "The Piae Cantiones". In 1592, exactly three hundred years before the founding of the modern Finnish musical establishment, the headmaster of Turku Cathedral School compiled and edited a collection of 74 songs which he entitled "Piae Cantiones" (Devout Church). As a protestant he was at odds with the catholic publisher and this religious tension is evident throughout. The melodies originated at various times and features songs up to five parts. The song now known as Good King Wenceslasis is most enjoyable and this all a cappella recording is certainly interesting. The beautiful, uniform purity of sound the singers achieve make this recording an essential addition to any collection.

Songlist: Aetas Carmen melodiae, Parce Christus spes reorum, Tempus adest floridum, Resonet in laudibus, Cedit hyems eminus, Personent hodie, Jesu dulcis memoria, In dulci jubilo, Florens juventus virginis, Jermiae prophetae, Ave maris stella, Puer natus in Bethlehem

Gloriae Dei Cantores : Chants of Christmas

Review: Depicting the sacred mystery of Christmas in the ancient melodies of Gregorian chant, this recording will enrich anyone's experience of this holy season. The first Mass, the quietly joyful "Ad Missam in Vigilia," builds on the anticipation of the coming event, proclaiming the Good News of the salvation prepared for us by a loving God through the birth of His Son. The second Mass, the tender "Ad Missam in Nocte," is sung at the hour traditionally oberved as the time of Christ's birth. With exquisite beauty and strength, the Mass celebrated at dawn on Christmas Day, "Ad Missam in Aurora," expresses the coming of the Light into the world. The fourth Mass, "Ad Missam in Die," is a jubilant expression of the salvation and righteousness of God. This recording also includes special antiphons honoring the Virgin Mary.

Songlist: Introit: Hodie scietis, Gradual: Hodie scietis, Alleluia: Crastina die, Offertory: Tollite portas, Communion: Revelabitur, Introit: Dominus dixit, Gradual: Tecum principium, Alleluia: Dominus dixit, Offertory: Laetentur caeli, Communion: In splendoribus, Introit: Lux fulgebit, Gradual: Benedictus qui venit, Alleluia: Dominus regnavit, Offertory: Deus enim firmavit, Communion: Exsulta filia sion, Introit: Puer natus est nobis, Gradual: Viderunt omnes, Alleluia: Dies sanctificatus, Offertory: Tui sunt caeli, Communion: Viderunt omnes, Alma redemptoris mater, Ave regina caelorum, Regina Caeli, Salve Regina, Alma redemptoris mater, Ave regina caelorum, Regina Caeli, Salve Regina

Gothic Voices : A Feather on the Breath of God

Review: This is the record that started the Hildegard craze back in 1982--and you need only listen to Emma Kirkby glide and soar through Columba aspexit (the opening hymn) to understand why. Gothic Voices performs the music very simply, either alternating soloists and unison choir over a drone or using a single unaccompanied voice. The singers render Hildegard's extravagant poetic imagery and melody not with the rhythmically fluid, ecstatic approach favoured by Sequentia, but with equalist rhythm and a calm, meditative quality. Gothic Voices' straightforward approach is less likely to send you into a rapturous trance than is Sequentia's, but in the hands of such fine singers as Kirkby, Margaret Philpot, and Emily van Evera, Hildegard's extraordinary texts and melodies are captivating--and clear enough to linger in the memory as melodies rather than just sensations. This record is still a bestselling title - try it and find out why.

Songlist: Columba aspexit, Ave, generosa, O ignis spiritus, O Ierusalem, O Euchari, O viridissima virga, O presul vere civitatis, O Ecclesia

Gothic Voices : A Laurel for Landini

Review: The award winning and worldwide famous vocal ensemble Gothic Voices travel to Italy and the origins of its impressive polyphonic music: A Laurel for Landini - 14th Century Italy's Greatest Composer. This disc presents the group performing music by the Italian composer Francesco Landini, one of the most prominent and influential composers of that time and one of the most important for the development of later forms of close harmonic chanting - the forerunner of the famous Madrigal that would flourish later in the 16th century. This disc not only sets out the panorama of the time and the genius of Landini himself but also works by his contemporaries. Here Gothic Voices collaborate with the worldwide acclaimed harpist Andrew Lawrence-King. This is an important release that will appeal to those interested in singing and early choral music to discover a whole new set and experiments from a composer that helped create the choral forms that later revolutionized the whole of western music.

Songlist: Sia laudato san Francesco, O sommo specchio, Creata fusti, o vergine Maria, Questa fanciull' Amor, Batista da Dio amato, Deh, dinmi tu, De sospirar sovente, Vaga fanciulla, Ave Maria, stella Diana, Ne la piu cara parte, Guarda una volta, Per Pallegrezza del nostro Signore, Cosi penoso, Donna, perche mi spregi, Musica son/ Gia furon/ Ciascun Vuol, Peccatrice nominata, Conviens' a fede, Lasso! di donna, Mein herz das ist versert, Ne la mia vita, Muort' oramai, Che pena e quest' al cor, Piu bella donn' al mondo, Questa fanciull' Amor, Vergine donzella imperadrice, Questa fanciull' Amor

Gothic Voices : Music for the Lion-Hearted King

Review: This CD commemorates the eight hundreth anniversary of King Richard the First's coronation in Westminster Abbey. Soloists or groups of two to four singers perform each piece a cappella, sometimes overlapping melodies and harmonies with dazzling technicality. Each track glows with vocal virtuosity. The effect heightens with each successive listen. During Richard's lifetime the principal forms of secular court music were the conductus and the chanson. A conductus was an accentual Latin poem set to music for one, two, three or even four voices. The number of parts in a conductus governs not only its sound but also its style in performance, for the addition of voices usually increases the drive and aggressiveness of the work.

Songlist: Mundus vergens, Novus miles sequitur, A la doucour de la bele seson, Sol sub nube latuit, Hac in anni ianua, Anglia, planctus itera, Etas auri reditur, Vetus abit littera, In occasu sideris, L'amours dont sui espris, Purgator criminum, Li nouviauz tanz, Pange melos lacrimosum, Ma joie me semont, Ver pacis apperit, Latex silice

Gothic Voices : The Marriage of Heaven & Hell

Review: An essential document of 13th-century music and of vocal performance of three- and four-voice motets. 'A wonderful collection. Lusciously sung sensuous music...remarkable addition to the distinguished sereis of records from Gothic Voices' (Gramophone)

Songlist: Je ne chant pas / Talens m'est pris, Trois sereurs / Trois sereurs / Trois sereurs, En tous tans que vente bise, Plus bele que flors / Quant revient / L'autrier jouer, Par un matinet / He, sire! / He bergier!, De la virge Katerine / Quant froidure / Agmina milicie, Trop volentiers chanteroie, Ave parens / Ad gratie, Super te Jerusalem / Sed fulsit virginitas, A vous douce debonnaire, Mout souvent / Mout ai este en dolour, Can vei la lauzeta mover, Quant voi l'aloete / Diex! je ne m'en partire ja, En non Dieu / Quant voi la rose, Autres que je ne sueill fas, Je m'en vois / Tels a mout, Festa januaria

Hilliard Ensemble : Medieval English Music

Review: Towards the end of the 14th century, England saw the rise of a pleasingly consonant musical style that was admired abroad as the "English manner." Paul Hillier and the Hilliard Ensemble are heard in a selection of the most beautiful polyphonic songs and carols from this rich period. "The performance...match the beauty of the music - a sound of remarkable purity. Their ensemble singing is perfection itself, and each part is exquisitely phrased." - Stereo Review

Songlist: Salve Virgo Virginum, Now Springes The Spray, Ah Si Mon Moine, Adam Lay Ibounden, Foweles In The Frith, So Trieben Wir Den Einter Aus, Coventry Carol, Gaudete, An Adult Lullaby, Veni, Yeni, Salva Nos, Verbum Caro, Lo, Here My Heart, Binnorie O Binnorie, This Ay Night, Miri It Is

Hilliard Ensemble : The Singing Club

Review: Singing clubs of one kind or another played a small but key role in the history of English convivial music. Bustling 17th-century coffee house and taverns were venues for the singing of rounds and catches. Not particularly sophisticated, but many composers, Purcell the most prominent, created a series of miniatures whose wit and melodic invention have rarely been equaled. Acclaimed all-male septet The Hilliard Ensemble, directed by Paul Hillier, divides "The Singing Club" in two parts, beginning with "The Catch Club," Thomas Ravenscroft's "A Round of three country dances in one" and "There were three ravens," John Hilton's "Call George again, boys," William Lawes' "Drink tonight of the moonshine bright," "Dainty fine aniseed water fine" and "Gather your rosebuds while you may," John Wilson's "Where the bee sucks, there suck I," Purcell's "Tis woman makes us love" and "Sir Walter enjoying his damsel," Thomas Arne's title tune and others. The second part, "The Glee Club," features the upbeat "Foresters sound the cheerful horn" by Henry Bishop, Thomas Arne's "Sigh no more, ladies," John Smith's "The Anacreontick Song," Robert Pearsall's "There is a paradise on earth," and Joseph Bamby's "Sweet and low." 21 spirited, lilting, romantic a cappella songs that touch and cheer us on many levels-a beautiful, joyous CD!

Songlist: A Round of three country dances in one, There were three ravens, Call George again, boys, Drink tonight of the moonshine bright, She weepeth sore in the night, Dainty fine aniseed water fine, Where the bee sucks there suck I, Gather your rosebuds while you may, 'Tis woman makes us love, Sir Walter enjoying his damsel, Inigo Jones, Epitaph, The Singing Club, Foresters sound the cheerful horn, To soften care, The Anacreontick Song, Elegy on the death of Mr. Shenstone, Sigh no more ladies, There is a paradise on earth, O who will o'er the downs so free, Sweet and low

His Majestie's Clerkes : Frank Ferko - Stabat Mater

Review: Composer Frank Ferko's majestic new Stabat Mater (The Mother Stood) broadens the embrace of this profound medieval hymn depicting Mary at the Crucifixion. Ferko supplements the original Latin text on the theme of premature death with passages from classical Greek drama and modern verse. Ferko (b. 1950) composed his Stabat Mater in 1998 for the a capella mixed choir His Majestie's Clerkes. The Chicago Tribune pronounced their concert premiere of Ferko's Stabat Mater a classical highlight of 1999: "a marvelously intricate and sincerely devout tour de force that showed off the Clerke's disciplined, sensitive, and uncommonly nuanced singing." Writer Ted Shen asked rhetorically, "When will Frank Ferko be recognized for what he is, a talented and erudite innovator of old vocal genres?" With his fugal writing, Ferko "plays" the choir like an organ. Not surprisingly, Ferko is a veteran church organist and choral director as well as composer. He holds a doctorate in music composition from Northwestern University, where he studied with Alan Stout. The work consists of 25 miniature pieces (20 Latin stanzas and five English interpolations) "that fit together much like a mosaic," Ferko writes in the CD booklet. Musically, the composition employs "old-fashioned" concepts: tonal centers, church modes, major and minor keys, counterpoint, and melody. The music digresses occasionally, "but there is a basic tonal framework for the entire composition," Ferko writes. He describes the tonal center as progressing through two "arches," from E to B-flat and from B-flat back to E --"and beyond, in the final chorale."

Songlist: Stabat Mater, Cujus animam gementem, O quam tristis, Quae maerebat, Andromache's lament, Quis est homo, Quis non posset, Pro peccatis, Vidit suum, The Mother, Eia mater, Fac ut ardeat, Sancta mater, Tui nati, Layout, Haiku for an East Asia Scholar, Ancho y Ajeno, RSVP, Fac me tecum, Juxta crucem, Virgo virginum, Fac ut portem, Elegy, Fac me plagis, Flammis ne, Christe cum sit, Quando corpus

Huelgas Ensemble : Ferrabosco

Review: Alfonso Ferrabosco 'Il Padre' has suffered a curious fate: he has long been neglected on record, yet in his own time he was the most eminent representative of a famous Bolognese musical dynasty. After emigrating to England at an early age, he spent most of his life in the service of Elizabeth I, earning the admiration of his peers. Though implicated in some distinctly murky affairs - could he have been a secret agent for the queen? - Ferrabosco was above all a musical genius, capable of equally felicitous expression in the motet, the madrigal or the polyphonic chanson.

Songlist: Dolci ire, Aupres de vous, In nomine I, Peccantem me quotidie, Prima pars, Secunda pars, Tertia pars, Quarta pars, Quinta pars, Sexta pars, Septima pars, Octava pars, Nona pars, Decima pars, Undecima pars, Bruna sei tu, ma bella, Domine, non secundum peccata nostra, Quel sempre acerbo

Huelgas Ensemble : Jacobus de Kerle

Review: Perhaps Jacobus de Kerle, contemporary and peer of Orlande de Lassus, Clemens non Papa and Philippe De Monte, needed a tireless pioneer of the calibre of Paul Van Nevel to rediscover him for the 21st century. This master of polyphony, who was active in Flanders, Italy and Germany before finally settling in Prague, left works of timeless beauty - as this CD will prove.

Songlist: Credo, Agnus Dei, Cantio octo vocum de sacro foedere contra Turcas, Super omnia ligna, Requiem aeternam, Dies Irae, Libera me Domine, Come nel mar, A cinq voix, A sept voix, Media Vita

Huelgas Ensemble : La Quinta Essentia

Review: For their latest release, Paul Van Nevel and the Huelgas-Ensemble have distilled the quintessence of vocal polyphony. Their spectacular new recording illustrates the dominant styles of the Renaissance as reflected in the Masses by its three greatest masters. The strict counterpoint of the Roman school is evident in the Missa Ut re mi fa sol la by Palestrina (c. 1525-1594); the ripe perfection of the Franco-Flemish school can be heard in the Missa "Tout les regretz" by Roland de Lassus (1532-1594) and the flamboyance of Late Gothic England shines through in the Missa "Ave Maria" by Thomas Ashewell (c. 1478-c. 1513). An entire world recreated in gorgeously vivid sound

Songlist: Missa "Tous les regretz", Missa "Ave Maria", Missa Ut re mi fa sol la

Huelgas Ensemble : Lassus

Review: It was in seeking to set to music the emotions they found in literary texts and poems - imitar le parole - that the madrigalists of the early sixteenth century rediscovered the poetry of Francesco Petrarca. The rich imagery of his language provided the springboard for Orlande de Lassus, in particular, to show his mastery over a period of nearly forty years as one of the greatest composers of madrigals.

Songlist: Solo e pensoso, S'una fede amorosa, Di pensier in pensier, Tutto'l di piango, Cantai, hor piango, Che fai, alma?, La ver' l'aurora, Mia benigna fortuna, Io son si stanco sotto, I'vo piangendo

Listen to
Batto, Qui Pianse Ergasto

I Fagiolini : Monteverdi - Fire & Ashes

Review: Monteverdi's madrigals are a theatre of the senses: touches, glances, scents, the textures of fabrics, of lips and skin, the shining gold of hair, the deep blue of eyes, the sounds and vistas of nature, the coolness of water, the sun's warmth, the ecstatic agony of fire and ice. The second volume in I Fagiolini's Monteverdi conspectus allows us to trace this evolution from the early Mantuan a cappella madrigals that made his reputation to the late concerted madrigals of the 1630s written for the Viennese court - styles seemingly worlds apart, yet both forged by the same desire, to confront and master afresh in each new work the ever-present tension between mere art and real life.

Songlist: Sinfonia from "Ballo Delle Ingrate", Ardo, Avvampo, Rimanti in Pace, Ogni Amante E guerrier, Si Ch'io Vorrei Morire, Che Dar Piu Vi Poss'io, E Cosi, A Poco A Poco, Vorrei Baciarti, O Filli, Chiome D'oro, Batto, Qui Pianse Ergasto, Entrata from "Ballo Delle Ingrate", Lagrime D'amante al Sepolcro Dell'amata, Tirsi e Clori

I Fagiolini : Monteverdi - Flaming Heart

Review: Monteverdi: Flaming Heart' offers works from Book IV to VIII, a selection that demonstrates both the extraordinary compass of his art and the unprecedented depth and subtlety of response to a text. In recent years we have settled for a certain lack of danger in our search for an 'ideal' Monteverdi. I Fagiolini's 'The Full Monteverdi', revealed a new side to this music a Monteverdi of both beauty and horror, colourful, vivid, sometimes chaste, sometimes dirty, and always completely alive.

Songlist: Prologo: La Musica, Luci Serene E Chiare, Anima Mia, Perdona, Tempro La Cetra, Ahi, Come A Un Vago Sol Cotese Giro, Con Che Soavita, Sinfonia, Ch'io T'ami, Partenza Amorosa, Parlo Miser'o Taccio, Volgendo Il Ciel, Longe Da Te, Cor Mio, Piagn'e Sospira

King's Singers : English Renaissance

Review: Thomas Tallis (1505-1585) was the most influential English composer in his day. He lived at Court from 1543 until his death. He survived the coming into dominance of Protestantism during Edward VI's reign, the restoration of Catholicism under Mary in 1553 and the tumultous tussle leading to the Elizabethan Settlement which devised a new church establishment then dominant for nearly a hundred years. Throughout these changes Tallis continued to write choral liturgical music in both the older Latin motet style and the newer English anthem style. His greatest student was William Byrd (1543-1623) who pushed the authorities with his staunch Catholicism but was such a brilliant composer that he never received more than a heavy fine. Elizabeth awarded them the exclusive rights to publish music in her realm, effectively creating a monopoly. The King's Singers bring us a sampling of the huge output from these two most influential composers, including both motets and anthems. These are performed for the joy of those who love renaissance music, with the musical perfection expected of the best.

Songlist: Haec Dies, Te Lucis Ante Terminum, Beata Viscera Mariae Virginis, Ave Verum Corpus, Vigilate, Viri Galilaei, Te Lucis Ante Terminum, Lamentations Of Jeremiah, First Set, Lamentations Of Jeremiah, Second Set, If Ye Love Me, O Lord, Make Thy Servant Elizabeth, Our Queen, Sing Joyfully, Laudibus In Sanctis

King's Singers : Fire-Water

Review: Subtitled "the spirit of Renaissance Spain," this recording has our manly British sextet exploring, with aplomb and panache, the marriage of music and drama that was popularized by Catalan musician Mateo Flecha the Elder. The salubrious accompaniment of the Harp Consort, under the direction of Andrew Lawrence King ("consort" is a period term for an ensemble), sets the stage, as it were, for the unfolding of either courtly and elegant polyphony, or a display of rustic and passionate bravura. The latter, typified by the fiery dance rhythms of the villancicos, and the slow sensual breaths of "Zarambeques" (and bass Stephen Connolly's earthy timbre), are in contrast to the "Benedictus (from Mass for the Dead)" and "Por las Sierras de Madrid," (combining no less than four separate tunes with an improvised treble part, using a form known as qoudlibet). This mixture, blended with both scholarly acumen and a generous dose of unmannered showmanship, makes "Fire-water" a new King's Singers favorite.

Songlist: Vuestros Son Mis Ojos, Enemiga le Soy, Madre, Aquel Pastorcico, Madre, Por las Sierras de Madrid, Benedictus, Otro Tal Misacanto, La Bomba, Dindirin, Dindirin, Rodrigo Martinez, Antes Que Comais a Dios, El Fuego, Diferencias Sobre "Las Vacas", Aleph, Quomodo Sedet Sola Civitas, La Viuda, Oh, Que Bien que Baila Gil!, Zarambeques, Hoy, Gil, en Concejo Abierto

King's Singers : Gesualdo

Review: If you like The King's Singers, you'll love this CD! Gesualdo: Tenebrae Responsories for Maundy Thursday offers a small slice from the liturgy used for Holy Week. All tracks are superbly performed. The voices weave together to form a solid fabric of stunning polyphony. The responsories, here, are divided into three sets beginning with lessons from the Lamentations of Jeremiah. Gesualdo, an eccentric Italian prince and one of the Renaissance's more innovative composers, is best remembered for killing his wife and her lover while they were in bed together. His guilt over this shocking and passionate act is said to be mirrored in his music with its chromatic and often indulgent lines. The music is liturgical in nature, but this recording can be appreciated inside and out of the sanctuary.

Songlist: Lectio 1, Responsories from 1st Nocturn:, - In Monte Oliveti, - Tristis est anima mea, - Ecce vidimus eum, Lectio 2, Responsories from 2nd Nocturn:, - Amicus meus osculi, - Judas mercator pessimus, - Unus ex discipulis meis, Lectio 3, Responsories from 3rd Nocturn:, - Eram quasi agnus innocens, - Une hora non potuistis, - Seniores populi consilium, Benedictus, Christus factus est

King's Singers : Treason & Discord

Review: On November 5, 1605, Guy Fawkes was caught preparing to detonate 36 barrels of gunpowder under the House of Lords, unveiling and act of attempted treason that shocked the whole of Europe.Commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot, the King's Singers and Concordia illuminate the dangers of hearing Mass in secret, of conspiracy and downfall, and the protestant relief and great joy. The music, structured around Byrd's perfect 4-part Mass, contains motets by catholic composers, protestant anthems celebrating the downfall of the plot, and a commission from the British composer, Francis Pott, Master Tresham: His Ducke. A script, drawing on historic texts and reproduced in the CD booklet, uses the dramatized persona of William Byrd, the most celebrated composer of his age, to recreate the atmosphere of change and hope in the Jacobean court.

Songlist: George Washington's Almand, Kyrie from Mass for 4 voices, A Fancie, Gloria from Mass for 4 voices, Ardens est cor meum, Civitas sancti tui, Ave Maria gratia plena, Credo from Mass for 4 voices, Sir Henry Umpton's Funeral, O Lord how joyful is the King, From Virgin's womb/Rejoice, rejoice, M. Bucton's Galliard, Sanctus/Benedictus from Mass for 4 voices, Master Tresham: His Ducke, Agnus Dei from Mass for 4 voices

Listen to
The fauns and satyrs tripping

King's Singers : Triumph Of Oriana

Review: The Triumphs of Oriana is an extravagant musical compliment paid to England's Elizabeth I by Thomas Morley, published in 1601. It consists of 25 madrigals by 23 different composers, each madrigal concluding with the refrain, "Then sang the shepherds and nymphs of Diana: Long live fair Oriana." Oriana was a character in a chivalric romance long equated with Elizabeth, and Diana, goddess of chastity, would certainly attend the Virgin Queen. However idealized their pastoral setting, many of the madrigals are excellent, those by Bennet, Weelkes, Cavendish and Morley are well known. As a whole they captured the musical imagination of the time and they continue to intrigue-for instance, who is the mysterious "Bonny-boots" who appears in two of the songs? The soaring tenor and falsetto voices of King's Singers, England's brilliant, prolific male sextet, were made to perform this difficult, eclectic collection. Picking favorites, beside the four previously mentioned, is not easy: Tomkins' "The fauns and satyrs tripping" is lovely, as is "With wreaths of rose and laurel" by Cobbold and "Fair nymphs I heard one telling" by Farmer. "Triumphs" is a choral joy, an ode to a beautiful fantasy from long ago-sung by six men whose voices and talent are fortunately very real. Extensive, interesting liner notes.

Songlist: Hence stars! too dim of light, With angel's face and brightness, Lightly she whipp o'er the dales, Long live fair Orianakings.html, All creatures now are merry-minded, Fair Oriana, beauty's queen, The nymphs and shepherds danced, Calm was the air and clear the sky, Thus Bonny-boots the birthday celebreated, Sing, shepherds all, and in your roundelays, The fauns and satyrs tripping, Come, gentle swains, With wreaths of rose and laurel, Arise, awake, awake, Fair nymphs I heard one telling, The lady Oriana, Hark! did ye ever hear so sweet a singing?, As Vesta was from Latmos hill descending, Fair Orian, in the morn, Round about her charret, Bright Phoebus greets most clearly, Fair Oriana, seeming to wink at folly, Fair Cytherea presents her doves, Hard by a crystal fountain, Come, blessed Byrd

Lionheart : El Siglo De Oro

Review: Great recordings of the Spanish Renaissance composers Francisco Guerrero and Cristobal de Morales are often hard to find. Luckily, Lionheart has simplified the task by taking matters into their own hands - they recorded their own album. Perfectly balanced and blended voices are qualities to which every vocal ensemble aspires, but not everyone acquires. Lionheart does. If you love the Renaissance Period or you're wanting something other than the usual Mozart and Beethoven, Lionheart's El Siglo de Oro is just the album for you.

Songlist: Ojos Claros Serenos - Guerrero, Sanctissima Maria - Guerrero, Introit Rorate Caeli Desuper - Gregorian Chant, Kyrie Missa Ave Maria - Morales, Gloria Missa Ave Maria - Morales, Sancta Et Immaculata - Guerrero, Offertory Ave Maria - Gregorian Chant, Sanctus Missa Ave Maria - Morales, Agnus Dei Missa Ave Maria - Morales, Communion Ecce Virgo Concipiet - Gregorian Chant, Pan Divino Gracioso - Guerrero, Pastor Quien MAdre Virgen - Guerrero, Que Te Dare Senor - Guerrero, O Virgen Quand'os Miro - Guerrrero, Vana Speranca - Guerrero, Antiphon Ave MAria - Gregorian Chant, Missus est Gabriel - Morales, Hymn Ave Maria Stella -Gregorian Chant

Lionheart : My Fayre Ladye

Review: This musical homage to the fairer sex is performed by the all male sextet "Lionheart," whose member's impeccable credentials include past association with Anonymous 4. The group's foundation, and the cornerstone of it's sound, is Gregorian Chant, a style that is epitomized here. In medieval times, the church was the locus of existence, and expressions of devotion were central in music and art. Therefore, it is understandable that the role of woman in culture would be regarded similarly, and that songs of praise to her would take on a religious connotation, as to the Virgin Mother Mary. Predominant on this recording is the Sarum Chant, a plainsong used in rituals at Salisbury Cathedral in England. The melodies are simple and unembellished, the mood subdued.

Songlist: *The Beloved*, Quam pulcra es, Quam pulcra es, Ibo michi ad montem mirre, Who shall have my fayre ladye?, Salve regina misericordie, *The Unfathomable*, Adew mes amours, A robyn, gentyl robyn, Iff I had wytt for to endyght, *The Maternal*, Quid petis o fili?, *The Desired*, Tota pulcra es, Up Y Arose, And I war a maydyn, Blow thi horne hunter, *The Triumphant*, Anima mea liquefacta est, O regina mundi clara, Beata Dei genitrix

Listen to
Away

Mediaeval Baebes : Mirabilis

Review: "Mirabilis" is a Latin word with pre-Christian or pagan origins that was used in the Mediaeval period to describe a supernatural force on the fringes of this world. Eight beautiful women with equally beautiful voices and a fetish for stunning costumes (which they model in the exquisite full-color liner notes and which are now approaching the size and complexity of costumes created for SF's "Beach Blanket Babylon") continue to prove that 13th-15th century English music and poetry are totally hot and sexy. The Baebes, now down to 8 members, bring us another exotic collection of 18 songs largely from early English sources, with music and arrangements by Katherine Blake and other group members. Most songs are lightly accompanied by percussion, dulcimer, zither, saxophone, guitar, keyboards, strings and other instruments. Particularly wonderful are "Musa Venit Carmine," "Lhiannan Shee," "Umlahi" (with words and music by Blake), the haunting "Tam Lin," a sweet and lively cover of "Scarborough Fayre," the folk tune made famous by Simon & Garfunkel, the rhythmic "Come My Sweet," "This World Fareth As A Fantasye," and the ethereal "Away" which features Blake on lead vocal. "Mirabilis" is the 6th recording by the Baebes to grace our PAC catalog, and we have noticed 3 things--each album is excellent, each seems better than the last, and the Baebes are having as much fun dressing up and creating this magical music as we are, seeing and listening to them!

Songlist: Star of the Sea, Trovommi Amor, Temptasyon, San'c Fuy Belha Ni Prezada, All For Love of One, The Lament, Musa Venit Carmine, Kilmeny, Lhiannan Shee, Umlahi, Cittern Segue, Return of the Birds, Tam Lin, Scarborough Fayre, Come My Sweet, Mark Hur Var Skugga, The World Fareth As A Fantasye, Away

Mediaeval Baebes : Mistletoe and Wine

Review: Our definition of a Christmas gift would certainly include 8 beautiful women, dressed in mediaeval costume, singing songs adapted from the 11th through the 16th centuries, lightly accompanied such period instruments as Zither, Hurdygurdy, Harmonium, Citern, Glockenspiel and Astrowheel. We don't even know what a number of these instruments look like, but they sound wonderful! "Mistletoe" is classical and even sacred, but the Baebes' vital sound is anything but dry or academic. 15 tunes, some favorites: "The Holly & The Ivy," the traditional French "L'Amour de Moi," the dramatic "Salva Nos," "There Is No Rose of Swych Vertu," "Kimberly," the lovely "In Dulci Jubilo," "I Am Eve," "The Coventry Carol," the spirited "Undrentide" and the plaintive, haunting "Blow, Northern Wind." The beauty of the words and music are rivaled only by the sweet voices and harmonies!

Songlist: The Holly and the Ivy, Gaudete, Amour de Moi, Salva Nos, Glass Window, There Is No Rose of Swych Vertu, Kinderly, In Dulce Jubilo, Love Me Broughte, I Am Eve, Quan Vey La Layeta, Coventry Carol, Underntide, Ecce Mundi Gaudium, Blow Northern Wind

Mediaeval Baebes : Salva Nos

Review: This is chant with a modern twist! Twelve alluring women, dressed in medieval garb, singing songs adapted from the Middle Ages. Some of the songs, such as the French dance tune "Ah Si Mon Moine," are lightly accompanied by period-appropriate instrumentation such as recorder or dulcimer. The title track, "Salvo Virgo Virginum," "Veni, Veni" and "Verbum Caro" are sung in Latin; several songs are sung in what must be construed to be Middle English. "The Coventry Carol" and "Gaudete" are familiar holiday songs to most; they are given simple treatment, as was typical of the music of the era, which was defined by monophonic textures or unadorned counterpoint. Much of the music performed was either religious in nature, and sung as part of the Catholic Mass, or, if secular, was an accompaniment for dancing. "Salva Nos" may be a classical recording, and as such it is entirely respectable, but the "Mediaeval Babes" have a vitality that is thoroughly contemporary.

Songlist: Salve Virgo Virginum, Now Springes the Spray, Ah Si Mon Moine, Adam Lay Ibounden, Foweles in the Frith, Coventry Carol, Gaudete, An Adult Lullaby, Veni, Veni, Salva Nos, Verbum Caro, Lo, Here My Heart, Binnorie O Binnorie (Instrumental), This Ay Night, Miri It Is

Mediaeval Baebes : The Rose

Review: Nine lovely young women, clad in incredible Mediaeval costumes, look up at us from the extensive, beautiful, full-color liner notes of "The Rose," and we may say that they sound every bit as fine as they appear! Most songs are lightly accompanied by period instruments. 17 songs, of which we particularly enjoyed: "Glass Window," the a cappella "Slay Me Suddenly," the powerful "The Snake," "The Circle of the Lustful," the joyful "Laude Novella," the rhythmic "Dringo Bell," the title tune, "The Woods and The Rivers Are Silent," and the strange, but compelling "Spiriti" and "The Sour Grove." The Baebes carry us away to another time and reality, as impermanent as the Rose, and as beautiful!

Songlist: I am Eve, Glass Window, Slay Me Suddenly, The Snake, The Circle of the Lustful, Laude Novella, There Is No Rose of Swych Vertu, Lick the Maypole, Razreesh, Byrd one Brere, Dringo Bell, The Rose, L'amour De Moi, The Woods and The Rivers are Silent, Spiriti, The Sour Grove, Blow Northern Wind

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