Welcome to Hyperion Records, an independent 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.

Hyperion offers both CDs, and downloads in a number of formats. The site is also available in several languages.

Please use the dropdown buttons to set your preferred options, or use the checkbox to accept the defaults.

Click cover art to view larger version
Track(s) taken from CDA68299

Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland a 6

composer
author of text
Veni, redemptor gentium
translator of text

The Gesualdo Six, Owain Park (director)
Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
CD-Quality:
Studio Master:
Studio Master:
CD-Quality:
Studio Master:
Studio Master:
Recording details: January 2019
Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Produced by Adrian Peacock
Engineered by David Hinitt
Release date: November 2019
Total duration: 2 minutes 44 seconds
 

Reviews

‘A delightful album by an all-male a cappella group is hard to come by—all too often they’re po-faced or schmaltzy; but this is neither. An elegant blend of old and new’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘The close recording of the male-voice line-up of The Gesualdo Six on Christmas reveals the tightness of their ensemble in repertoire ranging from Praetorius to Cheryl Frances-Hoad. Tenor Joseph Wicks’ a cappella arrangement of Jonathan Harvey’s The Annnunciation and director Owain Park’s vibrant On the Infancy of our Saviour compliment well-chosen pieces, making for a delightful and informative listening experience—and a thoughtful stocking filler!’ (Choir & Organ)

‘What I love about this group—this is just their second disc—is it’s incredibly natural, it’s very forthright: they are so musical, so sensitive; we see straight through to the text … the way they listen to each other—the Tallis, these long phrases—I don’t know how they can sing it that slowly with so few singers. It really is miraculous! … I love that sense of magic that they get … not something kitsch and traditional and retrospective but something that has life in it’ (BBC Record Review)

„Unter dem schichten Titel 'Christmas' ist bei Hyperion allerdings alles andere als eine bloße Pflichtübung erschienen … gemeinsam verfügen sie [The Gesualdo Six] über eine reich sich verströmende Substanz, die Stimmen zeichnen klar, sind fein balanciert und zur edlen Verschmelzung fähig … in der Summe ist das ein eigenständiges, gelegentlich auch eigenwilliges Programm, mit schroffen, aber fruchtbaren stilistischen Wechseln auf engstem Raum“ (Klassik.com, Germany)» More
PERFORMANCE
RECORDING
German composer and theorist Michael Praetorius was one of the most versatile and prolific composers of his generation, but is perhaps best known for his adaptations of Protestant hymns. Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland a 6 takes a text by Martin Luther—a translation of the hymn ‘Veni, redemptor gentium’—and sets it to dramatic rhetorical effect, with imitative textures and arresting gestures constantly seizing the listener’s attention. As each new segment of the melody is introduced it is shortly followed by a series of increasingly florid embellishments—a constant rewiring of the texture that is interrupted with great impact to herald the final line, ‘Gott solch Geburt ihm bestellt’ (‘that God ordained him such a birth’).

from notes by Owain Park © 2019

Waiting for content to load...
Waiting for content to load...