Byrd: Masses for 4 and 5 voices

On this CD:

1. Diliges Dominum, motet for 8 voices (SSAATTBB)
Composed by William Byrd

2. Ad Dominum cum tribularer, motet for 8 voices (SSAATTBB) (text missing)
Composed by William Byrd

3. Gaudeamus omnes, motet for 5 voices (SATTB)
Composed by William Byrd

4. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Kyrie
Composed by William Byrd

5. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Gloria
Composed by William Byrd

6. Timete Dominum, motet for 5 voices (SSATB)
Composed by William Byrd

7. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Credo
Composed by William Byrd

8. Justorum animae (also anthem "Souls of the righteous"), motet for 5 voices (SSATB)
Composed by William Byrd

9. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Sanctus
Composed by William Byrd

10. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Benedictus
Composed by William Byrd

11. Mass for 5 Voices (SATTB) Agnus Dei
Composed by William Byrd

12. Beati mundo corde, motet for 5 voices (SSATB)
Composed by William Byrd

13. Super Flumina Babylonis, for 8 voices
Composed by Philippe de Monte

14. Quomodo cantabimus, motet for 8 voices (SSAATTBB)
Composed by William Byrd

15. Tu es pastor ovium, motet for 6 voices (SSATBB)
Composed by William Byrd

16. Quodcunque ligaveris, motet for 6 voices (SSATBB)
Composed by William Byrd

17. Hodie Simon Petrus, motet for 6 voices (SSAATB)
Composed by William Byrd

18. Nunc scio vere, motet for 6 voices (SSATTB)
Composed by William Byrd

19. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Kyrie
Composed by William Byrd

20. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Gloria
Composed by William Byrd

21. Constitues eos Principes, motet for 6 voices (SSATTB)
Composed by William Byrd

22. Tu es Petrus, motet for 6 voices (SSATTB) Alleluia
Composed by William Byrd

23. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Credo
Composed by William Byrd

24. Constitues eos Principes, motet for 6 voices (SSATTB)
Composed by William Byrd

25. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Sanctus
Composed by William Byrd

26. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Benedictus
Composed by William Byrd

27. Mass for 4 Voices (SATB) Agnus Dei
Composed by William Byrd

28. Tu es Petrus, motet for 6 voices (SSATTB) Tu es Petrus
Composed by William Byrd

Tracks:

Mass For Five Voices: Kyrie
Mass For Five Voices: Gloria
Mass For Five Voices: Credo
Mass For Five Voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass For Five Voices: Agnus Dei
Mass For Four Voices: Kyrie
Mass For Four Voices: Gloria
Mass For Four Voices: Credo
Mass For Four Voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass For Four Voices: Agnus Dei
Mass For Three Voices: Kyrie & Gloria
Mass For Three Voices: Credo
Mass For Three Voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass For Three Voices: Agnus Dei
Motet: Ave Verum Corpus

Customer Reviews:

a voice teacher and early music fan.......2006-12-29

GLORIUS! GLORIUS! GLORIUS! That's the best way I can describe this marvelous rendition by the Tallis Scolars of Byrd's three Masses.
William Byrd(1543-1623) was a Catholic in the Protestant England of Queen Elizabeth, and had to be careful to keep his head, in every sense of the phrase. By writing for the Protestant Church a Great Service and a Short Service, and for the Papists three Masses(on this disc),besides madrigals, anthems, and hymns, he remained in the good graces of both factions. In his position as Master of Musicke, he was called upon for music for every sort of occasion, and rose nobly to the challenge, inventing new types of composition as need arose. He composed a number of songs with string quartet accompaniments, actually the first vocal solos in which instruments played a the part purely of accompaniment.
Byrd published his three Mass-settings between c.1593 and c.1595 separately, in very small books. They have an unmistakable austerity of tone, and in this lies the peculiar power of these pieces. It is like a theme, to which each movement of each of these 3 Masses is a variation; but the theme is a MOOD, not a MELODY. During the course of these pieces Byrd clearly explored every feeling a man may have when he is fighting for something he passionately believes in, with his back to the wall. His 5-part Mass is one of the most convincingly argued, as well as sonorous, achievements in all his music.
There is no doubt in my mind that this Tallis Scholars recording is the greatest of all the recordings of these Masses. Peter Phillips has assembled his most accomplished singers for this disc (made in 1985). Singers such as:Sally Dunkely & Alison Gough (sopranos)-Michael Chance & Robert Harre-Jones (countertenors)-Charles Daniels, Mark Padmore,Rufus Miller & Nicolas Robertson (tenors)-Francis Steele and Jeremy White (basses). Their sound is sonorous;their emotional investment high and correct; their balance perfection and the diction is flawless! I have 2 other recordings of these Masses, and they just don't get to this SUPERIOR level.

Wonderful, Lovely, Mood..........2005-12-21

The harmonies written by Byrd will wrap you in a mysterious blend of piousness and beauty.

Wonderful for quiet time in an early childhood classroom.

Stunning music.......2003-07-27

--Mass for Five Voices, Four Voices, Three Voices--
Each mass consists of five primary pieces: the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus & Benedictus, and the Agnus Dei. The five-voice mass is probably the latest composition of the three masses presented here. It requires two tenor parts, and has an elongated Credo ending vis-à-vis the other masses. Like other Byrd compositions, in Phillips words, 'remains true to the English preference for counterpoint.' Counterpoint is a particular kind of polyphony that has a different emphasis, but a way to think about it is of having a melody against a melody in the same piece. The four-voice mass was likely the first composition, and remains the most popular. The three-voice mass presented some difficulties of composition, according to Phillips, to present counterpoint for so few voices. Nonetheless, it remains an exquisite piece of liturgical music. The Mass for Five Voices, however, is probably one of Byrd's greatest works, and thus has pride of place in this collection.

--Ave Verum Corpus--
As an added bonus, the Tallis Scholars have provided the 4-minute motet Ave Verum Corpus, also by Byrd. A motet is typically a choral composition sung at services other than masses (often at Vespers, although sometimes as anthem music). Byrd, together with Tallis (from whom this ensemble derives its name), was considered a master of the Flemish style of motet.

--Liner Notes-
Being internationally acclaimed, the Tallis Scholars' CDs typically present their commentary and texts in English, French, German and Italian (together with any Latin texts); that is true of this disc. The cover art also typically represents visual arts contemporary with the compositions - here it is a piece by Rubens, who was a contemporary of William Byrd.

--The Tallis Scholars--
The Tallis Scholars, a favourite group of mine since the first time I heard them decades ago, are a group dedicated to the performance and preservation of the best of this type of music. A choral group of exceptional ability, I have been privileged to see them many times in public, and at almost every performance, their singing seems almost like a spiritual epiphany for me, one that defies explanation in words. Directed by Peter Phillips, the group consists of a small number of male and female singers who have trained themselves well to their task.

Tracks:

Fant in d - Patrick Russill
Mass: Kyrie
Mass : Gloria
Mass: Credo
Mass: Sanctus
Mass: Agnus Dei
Voluntary - Patrick Russill
Mass: Kyrie
Mass: Gloria
Mass: Credo
Mass: Sanctus
Mass: Agnus Dei
Fant in C - Patrick Russill
Mass: Kyrie
Mass: Gloria
Mass: Credo
Mass: Sanctus
Mass: Agnus Dei

Customer Reviews:

Characterful and memorable.......2005-08-14

The music of William Byrd (c.1535/40 - 1623) was written in a paranoid and oppressive environment where the slightest gesture of pro-Catholicism could in the wrong context lead to imprisonment, torture and execution. Some even proposed taking away children from Catholic families to prevent them from passing on their beliefs to their offspring. The celebration of the Catholic mass too was forbidden, though still practiced in great fear and secrecy. It is into such a social environment that these works were born to be sung in privacy for fear of being discovered. The results are work of the greatest intimacy, darkness and mysticism - works that are arguably the greatest to have ever have flowed from the pen of an English composer. Indeed, Byrd is the yardstick by which all other English composers should be measured in the same way that Shakespeare is the yardstick for English literature.

The Cardinall's Musick are yet another group whose founder can be traced back to Cambridge. Andrew Carwood founded the group in 1989, which under his direction has developed a style of choral singing characterised by an unusually forthright and full-blooded approach, at least when compared to other groups originating out of Cambridge. In an age with so many Oxbridge choirs recording music by countless semi-obscure English composers, always to rapturous praise by English reviewers, it is easy to lose interest in this self-absorbed local scene of questionable international significance. Yet, whether you read German, French or Franco-Flemish commentators on music of the Renaissance, Byrd is as unquestionably accepted as a major composer as Shakespeare is as a major writer.

Perhaps few recordings of Byrd's music could illustrate this composer's ability as this collection of Latin masses - a musical form effectively defunct in post-Reformation England. The performances by the Cardinall's Musick capture the inner logic, and yet irresistible expressive drive on the lines in the performances that Byrd commanded. For even if Byrd lacks the effortless mellifluousness of Lassus or Palestrina's hushed sense of perfection, his music still has vigorous character. So performances as strong as those in the Byrd Edition here are particularly highly welcome.

Brian Robbins writing in Goldberg early music magazine thought that:

"This is the disc those not familiar with Byrd should make for first. Even those who are should add it to their collection as an urgent priority."

He awarded it the Goldberg five stars rating. However, like other English critic he tends to give nearly all of the Cardinall's music recordings a five star rating. A more honest appraisal was that by the American critic David Vernier:

"The sound is surprisingly timid and lacking in depth. Although there are some nice interpretive touches here involving special emphases, inflections, and other expressive nuances, as a whole the program just doesn't `fly'. Stick with the Tallis Scholars."

I think he was put off by the rather boxy and dry sound quality typical of all ASV recordings. The problem may be due to a substandard DA converter or poor transfer technology. ASV desperately need to upgrade if they can afford it. Still, I thought the 7/6 (for interpretation/sound quality) rating was slightly harsh for there are many interpretative felicities here that deserve recognition, particularly the forthright phrasing. Even the sound too is above average compared to other ASV releases - such as their Lassus CD.

Recommendable, although the Tallis Scholars' recording has definitely better sound (amongst the best ever afforded to them) and their interpretation must be counted as amongst their finest.

Thoughtful conducting, profound music.......2004-03-23

I got to meet conductor David Skinner while studying at Oxford two summers ago; I found him to be a greatly talented musician and teacher. At a performance of the Cardinall's Musick in Fartheringhay (in a small Renaissance chapel by the castle), he conducted his male chorus so beautifully that it was all I could do to stare at the unstained glass and try hard not to cry. William Byrd was slightly younger than Elizabeth Tudor, and died in 1623. He is arguably the best of English Renaissance performances. His music is simple yet profound, fragile yet overpowering. It's music to examine your soul to.

Superb interpretation.......2003-07-17

This is a superb CD. A must for anyone who like myself love these masses.
I especially enjoy the one for four voices, which is my favourite. Unlike the Oxford Camerata fine recording which has sopranos on top, Cardinall's Musick sing it at a lower pitch and has 2 countertenors on top (one is Robin Blaze!)
(They do it even lower than the Hilliards recording which is OK but for me marred by the fact that I don't particularly care for David James', the counter-tenors voice)
The do the four voice mass with 2 singer to each part, sometimes "down-sizing" to one in the more intimate parts, and it is a joy to listen to them

Average customer rating:

Renaissance Masterpieces (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Brilliant Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Magnificats | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Requiems | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Renaissance (c.1450-1600) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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Jesus of Nazareth

ASIN: B000092Q5W
Release Date: 2003-04-29

Byrd: Masses for 3 Voices / 4 Voices / 5 Voices / Ave verum corpus a 4

Average customer rating:

Exquisite, yes, but not cold ... this is angelic beauty!
Short but to the point

Byrd: Masses for 3 Voices / 4 Voices / 5 Voices / Ave verum corpus a 4
William Byrd , Hilliard Ensemble , and Paul Hillier (director)
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music
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Release Date: 1993-11-16

Customer Reviews:

Exquisite, yes, but not cold ... this is angelic beauty!.......2004-10-15

This 1983 recording is one of the highlights of the whole Hilliard discography, brilliant in every respect. Although there is a certain background noise from the tapes, the sound is still superb, with each of the soloists stepping right into the room, so to speak, but without the blend of voices ever suffering. Byrd's Masses can be performed at original pitch using female voices for the upper parts, but on the basis of historical research Paul Hillier decided to transpose the music down and perform it with all-male voices (with the exception of the Mass for Five Voices, where the Hilliards are unusually joined by the boyish-sounding Gillian Fisher as soprano. Perhaps it is David James' countertenor timbre which might mislead someone to think the performance 'cold', but once one has got used to this rather 'reedy' high male voice, one begins to notice in fact how ardently, how spiritually these singers perform. The music is allowed its full scope, flowing gently but inexorably from mass movement to movement, each phrase lovelier than the last. This is singing of angelic beauty, worthy of both the highest praise and the warmest of recommendations.

As a footnote I should add that Byrd's Masses are also available in an excellent choral performance by top British choir The Sixteen, directed by Harry Christophers (on Virgin Veritas). The choral version sounds rather different, but both performances are absolutely wonderful in their way, and I would strongly recommend all English Late Renaissance fans to get hold of both recordings if possible.

Short but to the point.......2003-03-12

Exquisite but a cold performance. It's still better than anything else on the market and thank heavens is not plagued by an overdose of ridiculous musica ficta applications.

Byrd: Masses for 4 & 5 Voices - Harry Christophers, The Sixteen

Average customer rating:

Overwhelmingly beautiful

Byrd: Masses for 4 & 5 Voices - Harry Christophers, The Sixteen

Manufacturer: Virgin / Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Jesus of Nazareth

ASIN: B00005UNXE
Release Date: 2002-12-23

Tracks:

Diliges Dominum
Ad Dominum Cum Tribularer
Introitus: Gaudeamus Omnes
Kyrie
Gloria
Graduale: Timete Dominum
Credo
Offertorium: Iustorum Animae
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Communio: Beati Mundo Corde

Tracks:

Super Flumina Babylonis
Quomodo Cantabimus
Tu Es Pastor Ovium
Quodcunque Ligaveris
Hodie Simon Petrus
Introitus: Nunc Cio Vere
Kyrie
Gloria
Graduale: Constitues Eos Principes
Alleluis (From Tu Es Petrus)
Credo
Offertorium: Constitues Eos Principes
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Communio: Tu Es Petrus

Customer Reviews:

Overwhelmingly beautiful.......2004-10-13

I have only heard the Mass for Five Voices with motets and excerpts from the Gradualia from a previous single CD edition (= the first CD of this set), so I cannot comment on this entire edition. But as for what I have heard: what beautiful music this is! The Sixteen is one of Britain's leading professional mixed choirs, and this production can be compared with those of the Tallis Scholars: superb voices, including a pure 'mean' (high soprano, here sung by females), a perfect feeling for this 'ancient' music (Byrd was a contemporary of Shakespeare), overwhelmingly beautiful both with 'the early Byrd' (motets) and the more meditative gradualia and mass pieces. The recording, made in 1988 at Boxgrove Abbey in England, is equally excellent.

Of course, there are different ways of performing Byrd's music, and some would prefer a puristic, one-voice-to-a-part approach (see for example the EMI Hilliard Ensemble recording). Others might consider using boy sopranos for the 'mean'. You just have to find out for yourself which approach you think adequately captures the spirit of this music. At all events, Byrd is the winner by this disc, which motivated me to move from Byrd's Catholic masses to his Anglican church music, his 'Great Service', of which there is an equally enthralling disc by the Tallis Scholars.

Average customer rating:

Byrd: Masses for 3, 4 & 5 Voices
Deller Consort
Manufacturer: Harmonia Mundi USA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000N0LZHY
Release Date: 1992-06-01

Average customer rating:

Stunning music
Fabulous!

Byrd: 3 Masses

Manufacturer: Gimell
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000001I5D
Release Date: 2001-01-01

Tracks:

Mass For Five Voices: Kyrie
Mass For Five Voices: Gloria
Mass For Five Voices: Credo
Mass For Five Voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass For Five Voices: Agnus Dei
Mass for four voices: Kyrie
Mass for four voices: Glroia
Mass for four voices: Credo
Mass for four voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass for four voices: Agnus Dei
Mass For Three Voices: Kyrie & Gloria
Mass for three voices: Credo
Mass For Three Voices: Sanctus & Benedictus
Mass For Three Voices: Agnus Dei
Ave verum corpus

Amazon.com

Every period of music history has its benchmarks, its summations of a genre, and Byrd's three masses take their place as supreme examples among the countless 16th- century settings of the Catholic service. It is not the music's structural complexity or elaborate vocal demands that makes it so special-- these works actually are less demanding than many of Byrd's motets from the same period. Rather, the music's deeply expressive mood, its emotional range, extending from "almost hopeless darkness" to "fierce defiance"--exploring "every feeling a person can have when fighting for something he passionately believes in"--is what makes it so compelling and powerful. It's also glorious music--the kind that singers love to sing and listeners love to hear. You'll discover just how true that is when you listen to these ideal performances by The Tallis Scholars on this early digital recording. --David Vernier

Customer Reviews:

Stunning music.......2006-01-18

--William Byrd--
William Byrd was a composer of grace and power. A staunch Catholic in an increasingly Protestant country, Byrd maintained his church loyalties at high cost. However, as a recognised genius at liturgical music, he had powerful admirers and friends, perhaps including Queen Elizabeth herself. Producing musical settings to Latin texts in a new-regime English-dominated church environment took courage. However, Byrd persevered all his life to produce music that remains timeless while being firmly rooted in its time.

--Mass for Five Voices, Four Voices, Three Voices--
Each mass consists of five primary pieces: the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus & Benedictus, and the Agnus Dei. The five-voice mass is probably the latest composition of the three masses presented here. It requires two tenor parts, and has an elongated Credo ending vis-à-vis the other masses. Like other Byrd compositions, in Phillips words, 'remains true to the English preference for counterpoint.' Counterpoint is a particular kind of polyphony that has a different emphasis, but a way to think about it is of having a melody against a melody in the same piece. The four-voice mass was likely the first composition, and remains the most popular. The three-voice mass presented some difficulties of composition, according to Phillips, to present counterpoint for so few voices. Nonetheless, it remains an exquisite piece of liturgical music. The Mass for Five Voices, however, is probably one of Byrd's greatest works, and thus has pride of place in this collection.

--Ave Verum Corpus--
As an added bonus, the Tallis Scholars have provided the 4-minute motet Ave Verum Corpus, also by Byrd. A motet is typically a choral composition sung at services other than masses (often at Vespers, although sometimes as anthem music). Byrd, together with Tallis (from whom this ensemble derives its name), was considered a master of the Flemish style of motet.

--Liner Notes-
Being internationally acclaimed, the Tallis Scholars' CDs typically present their commentary and texts in English, French, German and Italian (together with any Latin texts); that is true of this disc. The cover art also typically represents visual arts contemporary with the compositions - here it is a piece by Rubens, who was a contemporary of William Byrd.

--The Tallis Scholars--
The Tallis Scholars, a favourite group of mine since the first time I heard them decades ago, are a group dedicated to the performance and preservation of the best of this type of music. A choral group of exceptional ability, I have been privileged to see them many times in public, and at almost every performance, their singing seems almost like a spiritual epiphany for me, one that defies explanation in words. Directed by Peter Phillips, the group consists of a small number of male and female singers who have trained themselves well to their task.

Their recordings are of a consistent quality that deserve more than five stars; this particular disc of pieces by Byrd deserves a place on the shelf of anyone who loves choral music, liturgical music or Gregorian chant, classical music generally, or religious music. It is astonishing.

Fabulous!.......2000-04-24

Well, how can you go wrong with the Tallis Scholars, anyway? I will never tire of listening to this CD. The music is incredible, the interpretation is top-notch, the sound, the blend, the expression, are all wonderful. The music fills me with such awe and comfort; it is my favorite CD for meditation.

William Byrd: 3 Masses; Magnificat & Nunc dimittis; John Taverner: Mass "The Western Wind"

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William Byrd: 3 Masses; Magnificat & Nunc dimittis; John Taverner: Mass "The Western Wind"

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Chants | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Renaissance (c.1450-1600) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
ASIN: B0000042EH
Release Date: 1997-06-10

Tracks:

Mass For 3 Voices: Kyrie - Gloria - Byrd
Mass For 3 Voices: Credo - Byrd
Mass For 3 Voices: Sanctus - Benedictus - Byrd
Mass For 3 Voices: Agnus Dei - Byrd
Mass For 4 Voices: Kyrie - Byrd
Mass For 4 Voices: Gloria - Byrd
Mass For 4 Voices: Credo - Byrd
Mass For 4 Voices: Sanctus - Benedictus - Byrd
Mass For 4 Voices: Agnus Dei - Byrd
Mass For 5 Voices: Kyrie - Byrd
Mass For 5 Voices: Gloria - Byrd
Mass For 5 Voices: Credo - Byrd
Mass For 5 Voices: Sanctus - Benedictus - Byrd
Mass For 5 Voices: Agnus Dei - Byrd

Tracks:

The Great Service - Magnificat - BYRD/TAVERNER
The Great Service - Nunc Dimittis - BYRD/TAVERNER
Ave Verum Corpus - BYRD/TAVERNER
Kyrie 'Le Roy' - BYRD/TAVERNER
Mass 'The Western Wind' - Gloria - BYRD/TAVERNER
Mass 'The Western Wind' - Credo - BYRD/TAVERNER
Mass 'The Western Wind' - Sanctus - BYRD/TAVERNER
Mass 'The Western Wind' - Benedictus - BYRD/TAVERNER
Mass 'The Western Wind' - Agnus Dei - BYRD/TAVERNER
Dum Transisset Sabbatum - BYRD/TAVERNER
Christe Jesu Pastor Bone - BYRD/TAVERNER
Master Christi - BYRD/TAVERNER

Average customer rating:

a voice teacher and early music fan

Gradualia: Marian Masses
Byrd , Turner , and William Byrd Choir
Manufacturer: Hyperion UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000066448
Release Date: 2002-07-09

Customer Reviews:

a voice teacher and early music fan.......2006-01-09

A Catholic in the Protestant England of Queen Elizabeth had to be careful to keep his head, in every sense of the word. William Byrd, Master of Musicke, succeeded in living to be eighty years old and dying in one piece. By writing for the Protestant Church a Great Service and a Short Service, and for the Papists three masses, besides madrigals, anthems, and hymns,he remained in the good graces of both. Today he is acknowledged as one of the most versitile, original, and creative composers of all time. The Marian Masses that form the contents of this recording include not only the Marian Feasts generally authorised in 1605,but also the Votive Masses associated with the Virgin. A Votive Mass is a Mass offered for a particular intention or purpose, either on behalf of a group of people, or, as in this case, to a saint who was thought to possess special powers of entreaty at the throne of heaven.This recording contains motets for 3 to 5 voices that comprise the entire material for the Marian Masses. However, it's not necessary to get too involved in the structure of the mass but to simply enjoy William Byrd's polyphonic writing. There isn't a church within miles from where I live that sings any of this music at all including the Catholic churchs. That's why we all seek out recordings to satisfy our musical thirst. The singing on this CD is exquisite, the balance always correct and the intensity of devotion always right. And no wonder if you look at the 5 voice choir: Deborah Roberts, David Cordier, Michael Chance, John Mark Ainsley and Michael George. This is acappela singing at its greatest!