Victoria: Missa Gaudeamus, etc / Carwood, Cardinall's Music

Tomas Luis de Victoria (Composer), Andrew Carwood (Conductor, Orchestra), Cardinall's Musick (Performer, Conductor), The Cardinall's Misick (Artist), Andrew Carwood (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Cardinall's Musick
• Orchestra: Andrew Carwood
• Conductor: Andrew Carwood, Cardinall's Musick
• Composer: Tomas Luis de Victoria
• Audio CD (February 22, 2000)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Gaudeamus
• ASIN: B00003XB6M
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #339,036 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Missa Gaudeamus, for 6 voices: Kyrie

2. Missa Gaudeamus, for 6 voices: Gloria

3. Missa Gaudeamus, for 6 voices: Credo

4. Missa Gaudeamus, for 6 voices: Sanctus - Benedictus

5. Missa Gaudeamus, for 6 voices: Agnus Dei 1 and 2

6. Cum beatus Ignatius, motet for 5 voices

7. Doctor bonus amicus Dei Andreas, motet for 4 voices

8. Hic vir despiciens mundum, motet for 4 voices

9. Ecce sacerdos magnus, motet for 4 voices

10. Tu es Petrus, motet for 6 voices

11. O decus apostolicum, motet for 4 voices

12. Estote fortes in bello, motet for 4 voices

13. Veni sponsa Christi, motet for 4 voices

14. Descendit angelus Domini, motet for 5 voices

15. Missa Pro victoria, for 9 voices & organ: Kyrie

16. Missa Pro victoria, for 9 voices & organ: Gloria

17. Missa Pro victoria, for 9 voices & organ: Credo

18. Missa Pro victoria, for 9 voices & organ: Sanctus - Benedictus

19. Missa Pro victoria, for 9 voices & organ: Agnus Dei

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Music Beautifully Sung, June 19, 2000

By 

Thomas Tallis "2Dawgz" (Long Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Victoria: Missa Gaudeamus, etc / Carwood, Cardinall's Music (Audio CD)

Victoria is one of the most important composers of the High Renaissance. This recording, made over the space of a year presents two of his most engaging masses in beautiful performances in an appropriately warm acoustic (actually two venues).

This group's approach to musica ficta has not been to smooth out all of the "wrong notes" but to leave many in. The result suggests that their approach is the correct one. The added piquancy of the dissonances only adds to the expressiveness of the music.

English groups have, for years, changed few notes in the music of native Renaissance composers (notably Tallis) and it's good to see them applying the same principles to continental composers.

This recording is the one of the finest Victoria recordings available. It avoids the rather acidic sounding boys of the Westminster Cathedral recordings and the muddy acoustics of many other recordings. Go for it. You won't be sorry if you love Renaissance music.

4.0 out of 5 stars Qualified delight, December 20, 2010

By 

Ralph Moore "Ralph operaphile" (Bishop's Stortford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Victoria: Missa Gaudeamus, etc / Carwood, Cardinall's Music (Audio CD)

Ten years on from the previous review of this disc no-one has contributed another; I should like to add my thoughts as I have a slightly different, less ecstatic take on it. First, although I bought it some time ago, I have not found myself playing it that frequently, and I think that is because, glorious though any music by de Victoria is, his greatest works - the Tenebrae, O quam gloriosum and O magnum mysterium - exceed what is recorded here. For me, the second mass, Missa pro victoria (King Philip III's favourite) is more colourful and engaging than the first, which is a little dense and dour, being virtually shorn of triple time and much sense of exultancy, while the Motets, although engaging, are comparatively brief and small scale. The canon in the second Agnus Dei, however, is especially lovely.

Secondly, I honestly do not believe that the voices of the Cardinall's Musick rival those of the Sixteen or the Tallis Singers. One of the two tenors in the Missa Gaudeamus has a distinctly throaty sound, the basses are certainly less resonant and the sopranos cannot rival the beauty and purity of the star sopranos of the two rival groups. This is not negligible in a capella music, especially that of a liturgical nature, which needs to soar heavenwards.

This is still a fine disc which will give much pleasure. Tempi are brisk; I could sometimes do with just a tad more lingering over de Victoria's more succulent intervals - but the best is the enemy of the good.

PS: Odd that the previous reviewer calls the voices of the boys in the Westminster Cathedral Choir "rather acidic" as their 1983 recording of the O quam gloriosum is unsurpassed and one of my very favourite discs.