Gabrieli: Symphoniae sacrae II, 1615

Giovanni Gabrieli (Composer), Andrew Parrott (Conductor), John Skinner (Performer), Kevin Smith (Performer), Timothy Penrose (Performer), London Cornett and Sackbutt Ensemble (Performer), Emma Kirkby (Performer), Martyn Hill (Performer), Nigel Rogers (Performer), Paul Elliott (Performer), Rogers Covey-Crump (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: John Skinner, Kevin Smith, Timothy Penrose, London Cornett and Sackbutt Ensemble, Emma Kirkby, et al.
• Conductor: Andrew Parrott
• Composer: Giovanni Gabrieli
• Audio CD (November 13, 2007)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: L'oiseau-Lyre
• ASIN: B000QFAH7K
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #283,085 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pioneering the Gabrieli movement, May 25, 2008

By 

scott (Calgary, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gabrieli: Symphoniae sacrae II, 1615 (Audio CD)

This is a recording that I have known about for many years, but has not been available since the mid 1980s. In the meantime, I have acquired quite a few Gabrieli discs, and come to love these large scale motets. The recordings of Gabrieli by McCreesh, Parrott, King, Wilson, Eichhorn, and others have brought me great pleasure, but in the back of my mind the existence of this early L'Oiseaux Lyre disc has always sort of nagged me. Being recorded in 1978, it was on the cusp of the historically informed movement in Britain, and something of a breakthrough. Not to mention that many of the performers went on to become the pillars of the HIP scene internationally.

Finally, last year, this seminal disc was re-released, and I like how the packaging matches the (quite attractive) original exactly. I picked it up immediately, and am glad I did. Every movement except one is already in my collection, but that just makes the comparisons with newer recordings easier. And that is the amazing thing; this 30 year old performance competes very well with much newer ones.

This was the first Gabrieli disc to use historic instruments, and scaled-down forces that are closer the that which were used in 16th century Venice. Andrew Parrott practically nailed it dead on with his first try. I keep having to remind myself when this was actually made, because the performance is just about as good as others made now.

I can't say that any one of these motets is my favourite version, but taken as a whole, this set is so very worth having, for it's own merit as well as its historical value. And so inexpensive. Any fan of Gabrieli really should get a copy of this.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the first recordings to do justice to Gabrieli's music, August 14, 2011

By 

Steven Guy (Croydon, South Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gabrieli: Symphoniae sacrae II, 1615 (Audio CD)

A fascinating recording from a time when the music of Giovanni Gabrieli was almost universally misrepresented by all performances and recordings. I think the only really worthy recording of Giovanni Gabrieli's music made before this one was the one made by the Pro Cantione Antiqua London and the gloriously named Hamburger Bläserkreis Für Alte Musik, featuring 2 cornetti, viola and 6 sackbuts. It was on BMG and it featured an entirely male vocal ensemble with a group of boy sopranos for the highest lines. The second part of the LP was dedicated to the sacred music of Lassus, performed by the same forces.

This recording on the L'Oiseau Lyre label was particularly striking. It featured 4 cornetti 7 sackbuts, 2 dulcians, 2 violas, 'cello (not historical for this music), violone and a single organ. A number of soloist are featured: 3 countertenors, 4 tenors and 4 basses and the ubiquitous, at that time, Emma Kirkby on the soprano lines. The Taverner Choir is also present but it is hard to determine if they are separate from the soloists or merely made up of the soloists in the cappella sections.

The works presented all come from Gabrieli's posthumus collection of sacred works Symphonię Sacrę II, 1615 - a collection to this very day remains largely unexplored in performances and recordings.
The works featured here include:

1 Magnificat à 14
2 Suscipe à 12
3 Quem vidistis pastores à 14
4 Buccinate in neomenia tuba à 19
5 In ecclesiis à 14
6 Jubilae Deo à 10
7 Misericordia à 12
8 Surrexit Christus à 11
9 Magnificat à 17

The works are performed with style and some drama, when needed. We know a lot more about performing this music now and some of the works here are much better presented on later recordings - Paul McCreesh's Gabrieli Consort has done some marvellous work with this music, as has Roland Wilson's Musica Fiata Köln. Emma Kirkby is largely redundant here, even though he voice was in fine form. Hearing he sing the top lines of what should be instrumental "high choirs" (solo tenor human voice on the bottom line and all the upper lines, usually three or fours, played by cornetti), sounds very sweet, but it would almost certainly have surprised Gabrieli himself.
There is only one continuo organ and we know that every choir in polychoral works of Gabrieli should have its own continuo organ and perhaps some theorbos or chitarroni would have been better than the second dulcian and 'cello?

However, these are small criticisms in the light of the fact that this recording was made in 1978. The Magnificat à 14 is given a fine performance. and the Magnificat à 17 hasn't been recorded since. In ecclesiis à 14 is given a performance that stacks up well against modern recordings and I was surprised and delighted when I heard the countertenor Timothy Penrose tackling the cantus line of the favoriti choir!

I have to say that it is shame that more of the Symphonię Sacrę II, 1615 hasn't been recorded since. There are many large and smaller scaled works in this monumental collection yet to receive a decent recording. The same goes of Giovanni Gabrieli's Canzone et sonate, 1615, collection of instrumental works, probably the greatest of the period. Is there a complete recording of these works? No. This is a collection crying out to be recorded and it features some of the most detailed instrumental scorings of any collection of music from anywhere in this period.

I may add that Mr Andrew Parrott made some incredible recordings of Giovanni Gabrieli's music in the 1990s for EMI. These are still available on the Virgin label.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gabrieli Symphoniae sacrae II, 1615, February 9, 2008

By 

Ron Kickasola - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gabrieli: Symphoniae sacrae II, 1615 (Audio CD)

A magnificent recording. Although the first by this ensemble, it still remains the best!