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Fitzalan Chapel, Arundel Castle, United Kingdom
Produced by Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
Engineered by Martin Haskell & Iestyn Rees
Release date: November 2006
Total duration: 68 minutes 20 seconds
DIAPASON D'OR
'If, according to Burney, the Mannheim orchestra of 1772 was 'an army of Generals', the Cardinall's Musick of 2006 is surely 'an exaltation of larks'... Performances of exquisite perfection' (International Record Review)
'The 12 voices sing out, individuality intact and ideal for airing the awesome polyphony of Byrd's Latin motets, both fervent and meditative' (The Times)
'This is the tenth disc in the ensemble's complete recordings of Byrd, but the first in the series with Hyperion... [The] engineering gains and the artists' freshness and conviction make this recording a high-water mark in the project. Carwood has captured the passion, delicacy and complexity of England's greatest Renaissance composer' (BBC Music Magazine)
'The grasp that Andrew Carwood and his Cardinall's Musick group have on Byrd's scores now seems unassailable; the fluidity and elevated level of internal detail in the opening 'Laudibus in sanctis' sets out their stall for the rest of this thoughtfully conceived album' (Choir & Organ magazine)
'Sit back and enjoy the gleaming passionate tones of the Cardinall's Musick as they take you on a tour of some of the choral finest music of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries' (Early Music Forum of Scotland News)
This disc offers sacred works from two of his collections: Cantiones Sacrae (1591) and the 1605 Gradualia. The latter includes the complete Propers for Lady Mass in Easter Tide as well as a gorgeous Regina Caeli setting. The Cardinall's Musick perform with powerful energy and a creamy vocal blend. Highly recommended' (CD Hotlist)
' … Le volume X atteint une variété sonore qui rend justice à tous les registres du programme, jusqu'aux passages madrigalesques les plus échevelés, Apparebit in finem le premier. Toujours à un par voix, brillamment conduits, ces excellents chanteurs magnifient avec autant de maîtrise que d'engagement un immense compositeur. Magistral' (Diapason)
'Andrew Carwood and the Cardinall's Musick are distinguished exponents of this repertoire and their singing is uniformly superb and vigorously uplifting. Annotations and sound are beyond blemish in what is an issue of five-star quality' (Classical.net)
'An ideal interpreter of this music, his insight into the music combining with his sympathy for the composer' (Fanfare, USA)
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Quis est homo?
[6'19]
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Tribulatio proxima est
[5'28]
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Apparebit in finem
[2'33]
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Salve sancta parens
[4'37]
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Beata es, Virgo Maria
[2'06]
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Beata viscera
[1'48]
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Regina caeli
[4'48]
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Salve regina a 5
[7'07]
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Fac cum servo tuo
[4'41]
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Ecce quam bonum
[3'41]
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In manus tuas, Domine
[2'14]
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Unam petii a Domino
[3'50]
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Visita quaesumus, Domine
[3'19]
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Laudibus in sanctis
[5'44]
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It is Byrd’s genius which first attracts musicians and listeners to his music: his fine command of invention and dramatic flow, his subtle melodies and harmonic turns mixed with a sophisticated understanding of the texts that he chose to set. Quite simply he was the finest composer of his age. For ten years now Andrew Carwood and The Cardinall’s Musick have been engaged on a project to make the definitive recordings of William Byrd’s Latin Church music. We are delighted to be able to issue this tenth disc—there will be three more to complete the series—on the Hyperion label (volumes 1 to 9 appeared on the ASV/Sanctuary imprint). The survey has now reached the highpoint of Byrd’s creative achievement that is the 1591 Cantiones Sacrae publication from which we have seven works, culminating in the athletic extravagances of Laudibus in sanctis. From the 1605 Gradualia—the thread of Byrd’s subversive liturgical legacy which has run through the whole of this series—we have a further nine motets, including the Propers for use at Lady Mass in Eastertide. |
Other albums in this series |