Welcome to Hyperion Records, a British classical label devoted to presenting high-quality recordings of music of all styles and from all periods from the twelfth century to the twenty-first.

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Track(s) taken from SIGCD150

Il est bel et bon

composer
Pierre Passereau (fl1509-1547)
author of text
Pierre Passereau (fl1509-1547)

The King's Singers
Recording details: August 2008
Royal Albert Hall, United Kingdom
Engineered by Marvin Ware & Bill Whiston
Release date: November 2009
Total duration: 1 minutes 3 seconds

Cover artwork: Photo by Marco Borggreve.
 

Reviews

'The group’s diction is so perfect that no-one will have a problem following the English numbers, and even the French pieces were clear enough for me to understand most of what was going on … a triumphant evening, then, and a fitting tribute to one of the UK’s greatest cultural exports. Fans of good singing should not hesitate' (MusicWeb International)
The chanson poets of early sixteenth century France developed a sophisticated language of sensual allegory and imagery, frequently presenting a natural view of the unrestrained pleasures of sex by recalling the libidinous antics of birds. Passereau’s Il est bel et bon reveals the earthly pleasures sought by a young wife while her husband tends to their clucking hens. This sparky little piece was, according to the sixteenth century commedia dell’arte actor Andrea Calmo, a popular hit on the streets of Venice.

from notes by Andrew Stewart © 2008

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