In Celebration of the Human Voice - The Essential Musical Instrument

Suspicious Cheese Lords

Male Choral Ensemble from Washington, DC, United States.

The Suspicious Cheese Lords was founded by Clifton "Skip" West in 1996. Skip had the typical American dream of wanting to sing Thomas Tallis' Lamentations of the Prophet Jeremiah. To accomplish this goal, he enticed a core group of five amateur singers, friends who were current and former members of the Cathedral Choral Society, by promising a home-cooked dinner to those who would come and bellow.

Since then, the Cheese Lords have consisted of between 10 and 15 members. They still gather in Skip's dining room once a week to sing, drink, talk, eat, drink, sing, and did we say drink? In spite of this-or perhaps because of it-this male a cappella ensemble has been able to prepare and perform high-quality and heart-felt music throughout the Washington, D.C. area.

The ensemble assisted in the developing "An Evening at the Tabbard Inn" an event for the Smithsonian Institution's Resident Associates program in which the Cheese Lords provided music contemporary to Chauncer's Canterbury Tales and related to the theme of pilgrimage.

The Lords' other performance venues have included the Washington National Cathedral, the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, the National Gallery of Art, Epiphany Catholic Church (Georgetown), the Church of the Ascension and Saint Agnes, Christ Church (La Plata, MD), the Cathedral of St. Thomas More (Arlington, VA), the Old Presbyterian Meeting House (Alexandria, VA), Christendom College (Front Royal, VA).

The Cheese Lords have also had several performances on XM Satellite Radio including regular broadcasts on the Vox Channel. They are currently featured on the Symphony Hall channel.

Discography

Displaying 1-2 of 2 items.

Suspicious Cheese Lords : Maestro di Capella - Music of Elzear Genet (Carpentras)

Review: Elzear Genet (c. 1470-1548) sang in the papal chapel under Pope Julius II, and thereafter in the court of the French king Louis XII. On November 5, 1513, he became the first composer to be named Master of the Papal Chapel. Working for Pope Leo X, who, in the Medici tradition, was a lavish patron of the arts, Genet's musical output became exclusively sacred. Although Genet was the first composer to publish his collected works, his music has unjustly fallen into near-oblivion. By the late 16th century, Genet's works had been replaced with newer settings by Palestrina and other composers. Sadly, there are no documented performances of his music again until the early 19th century.

Songlist: Gabriel angelus, Tibi Christe, Virgo prudentissima, Jubilate Deo, Crucem tuam adoramus, Magnificat, Haec est illa dulcis rosa, Missa "Se mieulx ne vient", Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnes Dei, Pange lingua

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Suspicious Cheese Lords : Missa L'homme arme - Sacred Music of Ludwig Senfl

Review: Missa L'homme Arme: Sacred Music of Ludwig Senfl is the Cheese Lords' second CD, and a world premeire recording of the music of Ludwig Senfl (1486-1543). Senfl was born in Basel, Switzerland around 1486. At an early age he joined the court chapel of the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilain I, as a choirboy. In Maximilian's chapel, Senfl met and studied with the court composer Henrich Isaac, and after a brief time away from the chapel, returned as an adult singer and Isaac's principle assistant. After Maximilan's death in 1519, his chapel was disbanded and Senfl's history is less clear. Eventually, he joined the chapel of Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria, where he remained until his death in 1542 or 1543. Senfl was a prolific composer with an output of over 100 mass settings, 50 vespers settings, and over 100 sacred motets. The vast majority of Senfl's music is unrecorded. The Cheese Lords are proud to present this selection of Senfl's sacred work, featuring a mass based on the popular French tune L'homme arme.

Songlist: Te Deum, Miserere mei Deus, Virgo prudentissima / Fortuna desperata, Quid vitam sine te, L'homme arme, Missa "L'homme arme", Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei

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