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Track(s) taken from CDA67658

Asperges me, Domine

composer
5vv
author of text
Psalm 50 (51): 9, 3

Cinquecento
Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
CD-Quality:
Studio Master:
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Recording details: August 2007
Wallfahrtskirche, St Wolfgang bei Weitra, Austria
Produced by Stephen Rice
Engineered by Markus Wallner
Release date: May 2008
Total duration: 4 minutes 5 seconds

Cover artwork: Winter. Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527-1593)
Private Collection, © Agnew's, London / Bridgeman Images
 

Reviews

‘The music is beautifully performed and well worth a listen; Monte's settings are full of variety and fruity chromaticisms, and Cinquecento more than does him justice’ (Choir & Organ)

‘Their performances make it clear that Monte is a composer of distinction’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘An enticing snapshot of [Monte's] musical personality. Detailed word-painting and an imaginatively dramatic response to his texts' changing moods are displayed in pieces such as Ad te levavi and Miserere mei’ (The Daily Telegraph)

‘An impassioned and beautiful performance by Cinquecento … the exceptional blend of voices and unified approach to phrasing augur well for their future as great interpreters of Renaissance music … a marvellous affinity for Monte … they have no need of a conductor to achieve lovely long phrases full of warmth and life … the individual voices are all lovely, and the countertenors float above the texture without dominating it’ (Early Music Review)

‘An unusually gifted ensemble, both vocally and musically … here is a group whose tone, vocal flexibility, collective and individual musicianship and commitment to their chosen repertoire places them at the very forefront of modern-day specialists in the performance of Renaissance vocal music … a disc which is not only a real treat to the ears but a most valuable and worthwhile exposé of little-known repertoire … unfailingly compelling and absorbing performances … it is the Mass which, at 25 minutes, dominates the disc and shows most obviously the many strengths of this outstanding vocal ensemble … at the start of the Kyrie, for example, we have a layered texutre the subtle balance of which, while seeming entirely natural, must have taken a great deal of effort to achieve. As it unfolds there is the impression of clouds parting to reveal a vast landscape as viewed from a montain top, a sense of spaciousness and a grandeur which is profoundly moving. This is a veritable jewel of a disc’ (International Record Review)

‘Beautifully blended sound by a young pan-European vocal sextet, rich with character and individuality in rare 16th-century polyphony’ (Classic FM Magazine)
The short setting of the ablution antiphon Asperges me, Domine is a liturgical work, designed for use in the penitential rite that begins (or, strictly, precedes) the Mass. The antiphon, whose words are taken from Psalm 50, is intoned in plainsong, as are further words from the same Psalm and a doxology, the five-part polyphony following each intonation. The tradition of setting the Asperges me polyphonically is most notable in Spain; Monte’s setting differs from the majority of its Spanish cousins by virtue of its somewhat more distant relationship with the plainchant.

from notes by Stephen Rice © 2008

La courte mise en musique de l’antienne pour l’ablution Asperges me, Domine est une œuvre liturgique, destinée au rite pénitentiel qui ouvre (ou, à strictement parler, qui précède) la messe. L’antienne, dont les paroles sont empruntées au psaume 50, est entonnée en plain-chant, tout comme d’autres versets du même psaume et une doxologie, la polyphonie à cinq parties suivant chaque intonation. La tradition qui consiste à mettre en polyphonie l’Asperges me est particulièrement remarquable en Espagne; la version de de Monte se démarque de presque toutes ses cousines espagnoles par la relation un peu plus distante qu’elle entretient avec le plain-chant.

extrait des notes rédigées par Stephen Rice © 2008
Français: Hypérion

Die kurze Vertonung der Ablutions-Antiphon Asperges me, Domine ist ein liturgisches Werk, das zum Gebrauch im Bußritual am Anfang (oder strikt genommen vor) der Messe gedacht ist. Die Antiphon, deren Worte aus Psalm 50 entnommen sind, sowie weitere Worte aus dem Psalm und eine Doxologie werden choraliter angestimmt, und jeder Intonation folgt fünfstimmige Polyphonie. Die Tradition, Asperges me polyphon zu setzen war besonders in Spanien verbreitet, Montes Vertonung unterscheidet sich von seinen spanischen Verwandten durch seine lockerere Beziehung zum Choral.

aus dem Begleittext von Stephen Rice © 2008
Deutsch: Renate Wendel

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