La Rossignol puts together an engaging collection of Renaissance secular music. If you’re a fan of early music, many of their selections will be familiar. There are dances from Tielman Susato’s 1551 “Danserye” and Michael Praetorius’ 1621 “Terpsichore.” The selections from Thoinot Arbeau, Adrian Le Roy and Pierre Phalèse are also found on many releases. So what […]
renaissance music
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Masses from the Mysterious Master of the Polish Baroque, Bartholomiej Pekiel
During the transition from Renaissance to Baroque that began around 1600, contemporary musicians developed terms to capture the distinction — stile antico and stile moderno. To a date that runs surprisingly late into the seventeenth century, there were a number of composers that worked readily in both, and to that company belongs the little-known Polish […]
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Italian Lute Virtuosi of the Renaissance – Jakob Lindberg
There’s an art to putting a release together, especially one for a solo instrument. With only one instrumental timbre, the tracks can blend together into an uninteresting blur. But change up styles too much, and the album can sound disjointed. Lutenist Jakob Lindberg is a past master of program sequencing, and his latest album Italian […]
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Bernard Cuiller plays William Byrd
Pescodd Time is part of Alpha Classic’s ongoing reissue series of significant early music recordings. The disc was the first recorded by harpsichordist and conductor Bertrand Cuiller and showcases his love of English renaissance music — particularly that of William Byrd. I don’t have the original release, so I can’t say if it’s been remastered. […]
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Thomas Tomkins Anthems and Canticles
Daniel Hyde and the Choir of Magdalen College, Oxford, along with the early music ensemble Phantasm, present an interesting program of music by Thomas Tomkins. Five anthems for choir and viols (as opposed to just an organ) are the showpieces here, and rightly so. Tomkins’ use of the consort is more imaginative than just simply mimicking […]
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Viva Italia – Sacred music of the 17th Century beautifully recorded
This release focuses on the composers who trained, taught, or influenced the music at the Vatican’s Collegio Germanico during the 17th Century. It was a top-tier institution — Tomàs Luis de Victoria and Giacomo Carissimi taught at the college, and their sacred music is well-represented in this program. The 17th Century was a time of transition […]
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The Flaming Fire: Mary Queen of Scots and Her World
Tenor and countertenor Ryland Angel and virginal player Dongsok Shin join the viol quartet Parthenia for a introspective look at the musical world of Mary, Queen of Scots. The well-balanced program includes selections native to 16th Century Scotland (both sacred and secular), music from the English court Mary may have heard during her imprisonment, and […]
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Te Deum laudamus – Freiberg Cathedral 1594
Te Deum laudamus presents a fascinating collection of music from the Freiberg Latin School. The school — and the adjoining cathedral have a long and distinguished histroy daiting back to the early 1500’s. By 1594 (the year this program is centered around) Freiberg was a thriving cultural center, attracting some of the best composers of […]
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The Tudors at Prayer
Though the theme is somewhat narrowly defined, (English sacred music xx-xx), there’s a surprising amount of variety in this program. Henry VIII created the Anglican church, though it had very little change on the sacred music John Tavener and Thomas Tallis composed. His daughter, Mary I, reinstated the Catholic church, and the music of her […]