Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix

Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix

Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix

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CD Details

Composer: Pierre de La Rue
Conductor: Christopher Page
Performer: alto Catherine King
Performer: tenor Steven Harrold
Performer: tenor Julian Podger
Performer: tenor Leigh Nixon
Performer: baritone Stephen Charlesworth
Performer: baritne Don Greig
Performer: lute Chrstopher Wilson
Performer: lute Shirley Rumsey
Performer: Gothic Voices
Orchestra: Gothic Voices
Edition: Music CD
Running Time: 65 minutes
Music Label: Musical Heritage Society

Music reviews of Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix

Music Review: Masses for Market Day
Rating: 5 Stars

"Jour ferié" in modern French means a public holiday, but in the time of Pierre de la Rue (1460-1518) it would have meant merely a 'market day', as opposed to a Feast, a liturgically festive holy day. The two masses recorded here seem to have been written for such weekdays, with no specific liturgical rubrics on the calendar. Thus they would have been sung, perhaps often, by the workaday cantors of the chapel or cathedral, one or at very most two on a part a capella. The singers would have been paid, most likely, as part of a votive offering for the welfare of some ordinary citizen's soul. They are far from ordinary music, nevertheless. Both masses are radiantly beautiful, full of intense moments of invention and expression, lively rhythmic twists, and the very sort of contrapuntal 'imitation' that conquered the whole musical world of Europe in the generation of Pierre de la Rue, Jacob Obrecht, and Josquin Desprez. Pierre was no minor figure in his generation; he was the chief composer of the Hapsburg-Burgundian Court from 1492 until his death, one of the 'plum' musical posts of the era. I wouldn't hesitate to declare this recording the "Giordano's Pick of the Month" for February, 2010, except that it has been stupidly discontinued and is not available at a proper price here on amazon.

"Gothic Voices" is an ensemble that has specialized in music of earlier composers, 14th and 15th Century English and French. Their recordings of Machaut, Binchois, and others are extremely fine. To sing Pierre de la Rue is a leap into the future for them, but I think that's a benefit. I can hear the roots of the polyphonic style in their rhythmic clarity and in the 'living language' precision of their diction. They sing these two masses, and the motet 'Pater de celis Deus', strictly one-on-a-part. It's glorious to hear the distinct timbres of each of their voices, and the possibility of absolutely perfect tuning, unavailable even for two-on-a-part singing, makes this performance jewel-bright. Two other motets by Pierre, arranged as duets for six-course lutes, complete the CD generously.

Earlier today and also yesterday, I reviewed several performances of similar polyphony sung by much larger ensembles -- The Huelgas Ensemble and The Tallis Scholars -- particularly music by the Flemish/Italian composer Cipriano de Rore. I gave both ensembles four-star reviews, but in comparison head-to-head with this performance by Gothic Voices, I can hear that I was too generous... or else that Gothic Voices deserves an apostolic twelve stars. If you, dear reader, are one of the people who read my reviews of 'early music' with regularity, this would be an opportune time to compare for yourself, to listen to this CD immediately next to The Tallis Scholars singing Cipriano or Obrecht. Lacking this CD, you could make the same comparison using The Orlando Consort's recordings of Loyset Compere or Johannes Ockeghem, against virtually any recording ever made by The Huelgas Ensemble. You WILL hear a difference, and that difference 'makes all the difference' to my ears, in musical satisfaction.

More Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix free music reviews:
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Description of Pierre de la Rue: Missa de Feria / Missa Sancta di genitrix

- Missa de Feria - O domine, Jesu Christe - Pater de celis Deus, motet for 6 voices - Regina Celi - Missa Sancta Dei Genitrix - Salve Regina . SPars Code:DDD

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