Search - Pierre de Manchicourt, Cristobal de Morales, Jacobus Clemens Non Papa :: Reges Terrae: Music from the Time of Charles V [Hybrid SACD]

Earthly power, heavenly beauty

Stephen Midgley | Tarbrax, West Calder, UK | 08/08/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The name of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor from 1519 to 1556, appears fairly frequently in the titles of renaissance music collections including, for example, a very fine disc from Jordi Savall and Hespèrion XXI on AliaVox. Whatever one's opinion of his role in history, Charles V evidently had (in common with seekers of renaissance music CDs on the internet) excellent taste in music. What is more - and, sadly, unlike the rest of us - he also possessed the power and wealth to attract some of the finest musicians of Europe into his service. The result of all this is that CD compilations of music by composers employed by, or in some way associated with, his imperial court chapel, can draw on an extraordinary repertory of fine music, both from the Spanish musicians of the time, such as Morales and Guerrero, and from their great Franco-Flemish contemporaries of the post-Josquin generation.



The present disc from Nordic Voices is an exceptionally fine example of this genre, and it stands out from other such collections for two reasons. Firstly their choice of works, and the arrangement of their programme, are brilliant, my own favourites being the marvellous - and rarely heard - pieces by Morales, Gombert and Clemens non Papa. Secondly, they sing like angels. Each one of the six members of the group has a truly lovely voice, their ensemble and balance are immaculate, and they perform each piece with an innate feeling for the music which seems to bring it, even after nearly five centuries since it was written, directly into our hearts. Listen, for example, to the purity, sensitivity and blend of the high voices in the magical opening phrases of Clemens' nativity motet "O magnum mysterium"; and the same applies to the lower voices at the start of Gombert's beautiful "Ego sum qui sum".



In short their interpretation of this music, in both its sound and its emotional content, is of the very highest quality, and the recording perfectly captures the Norwegian church acoustic. Judging by their other discs so far, Nordic Voices cover a varied repertory of music from early to modern. But on the evidence of this lovely "Reges terrae" collection, let's hope this truly outstanding young a cappella group will be bringing us more CDs of renaissance music.

"

Exquisite Singing!

Giordano Bruno | Wherever I am, I am. | 01/26/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The six singers of the ensemble "Nordic Voices" have taken to heart the Biblical injunction to 'make a joyful noise unto the Lord', though the Lords of the Earth - Reges Terrae - of their CD title were the 16th C Hapsburg monarchs Charles V, Maximilian I, and others. That is, the motets recorded here were all written by composers in the service of secular lords, for performance in courtly chapels; the composers are: Pierre de Manchicourt, Cristobal de Morales, Clemens 'non Papa', Francisco Guerrero, and Nicolas Gombert. Nordic Voices seem to have a special affinity for Manchicourt; the two motets and the Agnus Dei by that little-known master are the most thrilling tracks on this CD, rhythmically incisive and passionately expressive. Let me proclaim unabashedly that the selections by the two great Spaniards, Morales and Guerrero, are probably the best performances of either composer available, the only close rival being the recordings by the Concord Ensemble. So trust me, this is a CD that earnest fans of Renaissance polyphony WILL want.



With their clarino-like vibrato-free female sopranos and altos, Nordic Voices sound a lot like The Tallis Scholars. Like the Scholars, I suspect they often transpose their chosen works upwards within the rubrics of the original notation. A beautiful serenity, a luminous soul-scape of sound, is what they intend, and they have the gorgeous voices to achieve that ideal. Their tuning is impeccable and their sense of precise ensemble is, if anything, better than The Tallis Scholars. That 'ensemble' edge is most apparent on the Manchicourt "Laudate dominum", with its exuberant "perfect" (three-beat) tempus. They take more chances with dynamics than the Scholars, and the affective results are impressive. They are simply more exciting to hear.



If Nordic Voices has a weakness, it's one of choice, a clear commitment to sonorous beauty over intellectual insight into the ordered structuralism of 16th C polyphony. At times, especially in the slowest meditative passages, their musical phrases seem to become no more than lovely gestures in front of an acoustic tapestry. If I were 'coaching' the ensemble, I'd insist on each voice singing through its line with stronger rhetorical, syntactical continuity. It's the usual issue, isn't it?, for performers of this repertoire, to interpret 'horizontally' when our modern ears are accustomed to verticality. Nordic Voices is NOT, by the way, exclusively an 'early music' ensemble; their other recordings include quite a lot of contemporary vocal music by Scandinavian and Estonian composers influenced by the revival of Ren/Med polyphony. It shouldn't be too surprising, therefore, if Nordic Voices' interpretation of "O Magnum Mysterium" sounds remarkably like a work by Arvo Part or Per Norgard. Let me say again: this is an aesthetic choice. Nordic Voices sing the way they sing so well that it would be silly to fault them for how they don't sing."