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Gaude plurimum

composer
John Taverner (c1490-1545)
author of text
Anonymous - liturgical
Marian antiphons

 
The function of Marian antiphons such as Gaude plurimum was devotional rather than liturgical; their performance after the end of the office of Compline was written into the statutes of various educational foundations such as Eton College, King’s College, Cambridge, and, in 1525, Cardinal College, Oxford, where antiphons to the Trinity and to St William of York were specified in addition to the customary Marian ones. Judging by the number of sources in which it is preserved, Gaude plurimum was held in especially high regard in the sixteenth century. Drawing on traditions established some decades earlier, Taverner generated a musical structure out of the contrast between passages scored for two or three voices and those for sonorous five-part choir, and thereby lent a sense of direction to this extended and effusive text. Much of the writing is imitative in style and concentrated in manner, with melismas generally being reserved for the conclusion of each section.

from notes by Sally Dunkley © 2000

Les antiennes mariales comme Gaude plurimum avaient une fonction davantage dévotionnelle que liturgique; leur interprétation après la fin de l’office de complies était inscrite dans les statuts de divers établissements scolaires—tels Eton College, King’s College (Cambridge) et, en 1525, Cardinal College (Oxford), où des antiennes à la Trinité et à saint Guillaume d’York furent ajoutées aux habituelles antiennes mariales. À en juger par le grand nombre de sources où elle figure, Gaude plurimum était particulièrement en honneur au XVIe siècle. Se fondant sur des traditions établies quelques décennies auparavant, Taverner façonna une structure musicale née du contraste entre les passages écrits pour deux ou trois voix et ceux dévolus au sonore chœur à cinq parties, donnant, par la même, une certaine direction à ce texte vaste, expansif. L’essentiel de l’écriture est concentré et de style imitatif, les mélismes étant généralement réservés à la conclusion de chaque section.

extrait des notes rédigées par Sally Dunkley © 2000
Français: Hypérion

Marienantiphone wie Gaude plurimum dienten der Andacht, nicht liturgischen Zwecken; ihre Darbietung nach dem Ende des Offiziums der Komplet war in den Statuten diverser Erziehungsanstalten festgeschrieben, darunter Eton College, King’s College in Cambridge und ab 1525 Cardinal College in Oxford, wo Antiphone zu Ehren der Dreifaltigkeit und des Heiligen William of York zusätzlich zu den üblichen zu Ehren der Muttergottes vorgesehen waren. Nach der Anzahl der Quellen zu urteilen, in denen es erhalten ist, genoß Gaude plurimum im 16. Jahrhundert besonders hohes Ansehen. Taverner griff auf Traditionen zurück, die sich einige Jahrzehnte zuvor etabliert hatten, um sein musikalisches Konstrukt aus dem Kontrast zwischen Passagen für zwei oder drei Stimmen und solchen für einen volltönenden fünfstimmigen Chor zu gestalten, und verlieh damit diesem ausgedehnten und exaltierten Text eine gewisse Orientierung. Ein erheblicher Teil der Komposition ist stilistisch imitativ und wirkt konzentriert - Melismen beschränken sich in der Regel auf den Schluß des jeweiligen Abschnitts.

aus dem Begleittext von Sally Dunkley © 2000
Deutsch: Anne Steeb/Bernd Müller

La musica di John Taverner rappresenta la fioritura finale dello sviluppo musicale della Chiesa inglese prima della Riforma. Non si sa nulla della sua prima formazione, ma è probabile che egli abbia passato la giovinezza nella cittadina di Boston (Lincolnshire) o nelle vicinanze. Nel corso del 1524 è chierico alla collegiata di Tattershall e nell’anno seguente accetta il posto di informator (istitutore) al Cardinal College di Oxford (ora Christ Church), fondato da poco da Thomas Wolsey. Nel 1530 lascia Oxford e nei rimanenti anni della vita è impiegato nella parrocchia di Boston, dove pare abbia abbandonato la composizione. La maggior parte della sua musica sopravvissuta è stata scritta verosimilmente per il suo coro di Tattershall, specialmente le antifone d’ampie proporzioni, delle quali Gaude plurimum può esser ritenuta la più bella. Il lavoro incorpora molti di quegli elementi strutturali proprii delle precedenti intonazioni dell’antifona, come quelle, ad esempio, che si trovano nell’Eton Choirbook: ciascuna sezione principia con passi intonati a 2 o 3 vv., che conducono verso un punto culminante dove il coro entra a pieno organico. Tuttavia, i metodi stilistici di Taverner son più raffinati. Nella costruzione gioca un ruolo essenziale l’imitazione ed ancor più evidente è l’orientamento generale che imprime alla composizione un indirizzo ed una tendenza alla risoluzione fortemente armonici.

David Skinner © 1998
Italiano: Bruno Meini

Recordings

Taverner: Missa Corona spinea & other sacred music
The Sixteen, Harry Christophers (conductor)
CDH55051
Taverner: Missa Gloria tibi Trinitas & other works
Contrapunctus, Queen's College Choir Oxford, Owen Rees (conductor)
Studio Master: SIGCD570Download onlyStudio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
The Sixteen & The Golden Age of English Polyphony
The Sixteen, Harry Christophers (conductor)
CDS44401/1010CDs Boxed set (at a special price)
The Tallis Scholars Live in Oxford
The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips (conductor)
Studio Master: CDGIM998Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available

Details

The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips (conductor)
Track 4 on CDGIM998 [13'21]
The Sixteen, Harry Christophers (conductor)
Track 1 on CDH55051 [13'29]
Track 8 on CDS44401/10 CD2 [13'29] 10CDs Boxed set (at a special price)
Contrapunctus, Queen's College Choir Oxford, Owen Rees (conductor)
Track 1 on SIGCD570 [16'56] Download only

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