Customer Reviews

Tudor Collection

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--Music--
This collection consists of four CDs, each having a key composer at the center: William Cornysh (d. 1523), John Taverner (d. 1545), Thomas Tallis (d. 1585), and William Byrd (d. 1623). For collectors of Tallis Scholars music, this will be repeat performances -- the music contained here come from prior releases, brought together as a set piece to show the relationship between these important composers. All of the composers worked for either royalty or other leading persons of the period; like much of the rest of Tudor sensibilities, there is an ornate, almost over-the-top quality to many of the compositions represented here. While much of the music is liturgical, there are a few pieces scattered about that are more folk-tune or secular in nature.

The Tudor period was one of fascinating history, and music certainly kept pace. One can almost envision the rivalry of Wolsey and Henry VIII in the compositions of Taverner (who worked for Wolsey) and Cornysh (who worked for Henry VIII, and prior to that, Henry VII). The development of the music over time, from Cornysh to Taverner to Tallis to Byrd can be heard, which makes perfect sense given the historical development of the personalities involved (Byrd was a successor to Tallis, who was a successor to Cornysh, in the same position in the Chapels Royal).

One of the difficulties of the increasingly florid, ornamented style of music is the lack of clarity of the language. Early polyphonic chant is fairly easy to understand; by the time of the Tudors, it is sometimes impossible to recognise the words being sung without the lyrics being provided in writing. The Reformation brought back a clarity and simplicity, which Tallis and Byrd adopted during the reign of Elizabeth to bring great effect to the combination of music and meaning. Byrd, of course, remained a Roman Catholic, and wrote his famous Masses at a time when they would not have been permitted to be performed in churches and official liturgical settings; as such, they possess a power of mystery and longing. They provide both an encapsulation and conclusion to the Tudor era of composition.

All of these pieces are glorious polyphonic compositions of extraordinary power and grace. Taken as a set, they make a wonderful snapshot of Roman Catholic/proto-Anglican music during the Tudor period. All subsequent liturgical music in the English church can trace its origin to this time; either in development from or in reaction to the standards developed during this time, this is a pivotal age for such music.

--The Tallis Scholars--
The Tallis Scholars are a group dedicated to the performance and preservation of the best of this type of music. A choral group of exceptional ability, I have been privileged to see them many times in public, and at almost every performance, their music is brilliant and the performance is delivered with near-flawless grace. Directed by Peter Phillips, the group consists of a small number of male and female singers who have trained themselves well to their task.

This is a truly wonderful collection.

QUADRUPLE PLEASURE 'DISHED OUT' BY THE TALLIS SCHOLARS!

At this point in time there are so many recordings with the word 'Tudor' in the titles it behooves the listener to be informed about the significance musically of the word. The liner notes that accompany this collection of four recordings provide the most easy to comprehend explanation of this music. At some point in the middle of the fifteenth century, English composers began to develop a distinctive musical style that was audibly different from those current in Spain, Italy, Germany or France. Melodic lines became longer, more ornate and increasingly virtuostic. They developed into flights of extravagent fantasy in which even a single word might blossom into flourishes and roulades(a run or arpeggio from one principal melody tone to another) of astonishing length.

Added to the above, important changes took place in the make-up of English choirs as unchanged boys' voices began to assume an active, even a dominant role in the proceedings. They were required to soar far higher-up in range, and in addition were trained to sing these virtuostic, endless melodies. Supporting them were teams of adult singers who also began to increase in number. By the year 1500, compositions for five, six, seven and even nine-part choir had become common in England, whereas four-part music remained the staple elsewhere.

This "Jubilate" singing involved singing complex melodies, often on a single, sustained vowel and manifested into compositions composed more for their essential beauty than for their power to express individual words or phrases. Critics have coined a term for this distinctive trait, one of the main characteristics of Tudor music: they call it 'florid'. And floridity bonds these four composers together: William Cornysh(d.1523), John Tavener(c.1490-1545), Thomas Tallis(c.1505-1585), William Byrd(1543-1623).

There are four recordings in this collection, and much duplication of performances. The Tallis Scholars have many 'overlappings' of works, and if you have many of their discs already, you are sure to find repeat performances, as I have as I play these, BUT it is convenient to have them grouped in this package. However, check carefully as to contents, for you may not wish to have so many 'repeats'. I include herein a few brief comments on each disc.

Cornysh was a composer, poet, dramatist and producer of theatrical entertainments (none of which remain today). His most securely attributed compositions are his songs, which shed vivid light on the court cultures of Henry VII and especially Henry VIII. Three of these songs are: 'Ah Robin', 'Woefully Arranged' and 'Adieu, Adieu, my Heartes lust!'These are still popular today and are included on this recording. Less securely his is the church music, some of which survives in the Eton Choirbook c.1500-5. These rank among the most spectacular music of its age, with its thrilling textures and virtuoso vocal lines. The Tallis Scholars in this recording (they change from time to time) are: Treble=D. Roberts, T Bonner; Mean=S Dunkley, C Trevor; Countertenor=R. HarreJones, A. Stafford; Tenor=R.Muller, N.Robertson and Badd=D.Greig, F. Steele.

Tavener in composing the Western Wind Mass was probably the first composer to write a mass based on a secular tune. He was no doubt emulating the famed mass-settings based on such popular songs as 'L'homme arme' and 'Mille Regretz'. The unusual scoring is a four-part treble, mean, tenor and bass; and the Western Wind melody, beautifully tuneful in itself, is almost always audible within the polyphony. There are too many singers to list here(18 in all) and again they vary during the performance as is usual with many ongoing choral groups. Actually the Monteverdi singers seem to change personnel less than most choirs of this ilk.

Peter Philips states that 'Thomas Tallis was an 'arch-survivor', composing dense, sumptuous motets for Catholic rulers, creating beautiful miniatures like the well-known and loved "If Ye Love Me'". (one of the most exquisite sounding sacred choral compositions I have ever heard!). Moreover, Tallis went on in this genre, summing up his career with major masterpieces like 'Spem in alium', which is on this recording along with 'If Ye Love me'. The singers on this disc are two numerous to mention, but a few outstanding are: T Bonner, M.Nichols,C.Trevor, S. Dunkley, Harre-Hones, D Cordier, M.Padmore and P. Harvey.

Disc four is by far my favorite (Byrd) in that, to my mind, it has a small but the best singing combination of the lot: Treble="A. Gough, D.Roberts; Mean=S. Dunkley, C. Trevor; Countertenor=Michael Chance, Harre-Jones; tenor=R. Muller, N.Robertson, C. Daniels and M.Padmore; bsses=-F. Steele, J. White. This disc is a reissue of a 1984 Gimell recording except that one composition has been added: "Infelix Ego". In my opinion, and that of many critics, there has been no other recording of these Three Byrd Masses that matches this one for sheer beauty of sound.

There is not much to be said about the Tallis Scholars that has not been said by past critics, aficionados and listeners, in general. They are superb, possessing a smooth, clean and pure vocal sound with perfect diction and the most 'correct' interpretation that Philips can determine from his always scholarly approach. They rarely disappoint and provide us with much knowledge in the Early Music Genre.

There is an excellent booklet that is very informative that also includes the text; language is Italian, French, German and English.