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Track(s) taken from CDA67938

Emendemus in melius

composer
5vv; Cantiones sacrae, quae ab argumento sacrae vocantur, 1575
author of text
Matins Responsory on Ash Wednesday

Westminster Cathedral Choir, Martin Baker (conductor)
Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
CD-Quality:
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Recording details: October 2011
Westminster Cathedral, London, United Kingdom
Produced by Adrian Peacock
Engineered by David Hinitt
Release date: January 2013
Total duration: 4 minutes 31 seconds

Cover artwork: The Annunciation with two saints and four prophets (1333). Simone Martini (1284-1344)
& Lippo Memmi (fl1317-1347). Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence / Giraudon / Bridgeman Images
 

Other recordings available for download

The Gesualdo Six, Owain Park (director)
The Cambridge Singers, John Rutter (conductor)

Reviews

‘The choir is on excellent form and the recorded sound seems perfectly to capture a sense of place, of atmosphere’ (Gramophone)

‘This is an album for those who love the acoustic, the atmosphere and the traditions of the Roman Catholic Cathedral in London … the pacing and cohesion of the Agnus Dei of Palestrina's Missa Emendemus in melius is accomplished and moving, and their singing of plainsong with organ second-to-none’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘The true musical spirit of the Lenten season … is to be found in the ancient antiphons, psalms and motets which have been part of the liturgical fabric of the season for centuries. This is what we have here, and an intensely beautiful CD it makes too … nobody could remain untouched by the profound beauty and timelessness of this music, and given these unaffected, sensitive and fluent performances from a choir which has been singing Lenten music in a liturgical context for decades, the result is something very special indeed … this is a beautifully devised programme, sung with ineffable perceptiveness by the Westminster choristers and recorded with utterly natural atmosphere by the Hyperion team’ (International Record Review)
William Byrd’s five-voice setting of the Ash Wednesday motet Emendemus in melius was published in 1575 in the Cantiones sacrae, a publication issued jointly by Byrd and his supposed teacher Thomas Tallis. The collection includes seventeen motets by Tallis and seventeen by Byrd, and was published to celebrate the completion of the seventeenth year of Elizabeth I’s reign. Emendemus in melius is the fourth motet in the collection, but the first by Byrd (since Tallis, the more senior composer, provided the first three). This pole-position placement is testament to the affection that Byrd himself held for this masterly composition. The astonishingly uplifting part-writing at the words ‘et propter honorem’ honours not only the name of God, but also the monarch who sponsored the publication.

from notes by Jeremy Summerly © 2013

Emendemus in melius, motet à cinq voix du Mercredi des cendres, figure dans les Cantiones sacrae que William Byrd fit paraître en 1575 conjointement avec Thomas Tallis, son maître supposé. Ce recueil, qui renferme dix-sept motets de chacun des deux compositeurs, célébra l’achèvement de la dix-septième année du règne d’Élisabeth Ire. Emendemus in melius en est le quatrième motet, mais le premier de Byrd (Tallis, plus âgé, fournit les trois premiers), qui devait donc tout particulièrement affectionner cette pièce magistrale. La conduite des parties, étonnamment édifiante, aux mots «et propter honorem» honore et le nom de Dieu et le monarque qui parraina le recueil.

extrait des notes rédigées par Jeremy Summerly © 2013
Français: Hypérion

William Byrds fünfstimmige Vertonung der Aschermittwochsmotette Emendemus in melius erschien im Jahre 1575 in den Cantiones sacrae, eine Veröffentlichung, die zusammen von Byrd und seinem mutmaßlichen Lehrer Thomas Tallis herausgegeben wurde. Die Sammlung umfasst 17 Motetten von Tallis und 17 von Byrd und wurde anlässlich der Vollendung des 17. Herrschaftsjahrs von Elisabeth I. herausgegeben. Emendemus in melius steht dabei an vierter Stelle, ist jedoch die erste Motette von Byrd (da Tallis als höherrangiger Komponist die ersten drei bereitgestellt hatte). Diese Positionierung verrät, wie wichtig Byrd selbst dieses meisterhafte Werk war. Die überraschend erbauliche Komposition der einzelnen Stimmen bei den Worten „et propter honorem“ rühmt nicht nur den Namen Gottes, sondern auch die Monarchin, die diese Veröffentlichung gefördert hatte.

aus dem Begleittext von Jeremy Summerly © 2013
Deutsch: Viola Scheffel

Other albums featuring this work

Byrd: Mass for five voices & other works
Studio Master: CDA68416Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
Byrd: Ave verum corpus & other sacred music
CSCD507Download only
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