Renaissance: Music For Inner Peace

The Sixteen (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 12, 2005)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Decca
• ASIN: B00076SJE6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #22,808 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This new release is somewhat mistitled: while most of the pieces are, in fact, from the Renaissance (or early Baroque), there are works here also by Samuel Barber, Poulenc, John Tavener, Bruckne,r and Gorecki. What they all have in common is their beauty and serenity. Perhaps the CDs subtitle, "Music for Inner Peace," also refers to a type of renaissance, i.e., spiritual re-birth: in which case, they're right on the money. The Sixteen, led by Harry Christophers, is one of the greatest proponents of this sort of choral music in the world, and they don't disappoint here: The Allegri "Miserere," with its wickedly beautiful ascent to high C by soprano soloist, is ravishing; Barber's own arrangement of his "Adagio for strings" for chorus (1967) is polyphony at its most "renaissance" without actually being so, and Gorecki's "Totos Tuus" is otherworldly in it mysticism. The selections by Byrd, Tomkins, et al., are, like the others, impeccably performed. Even an early piece by contemporary composer John Tavener, normally the master of excruciatingly pretentiousness, is lovely. This recording is a gem. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Music for Inner Peace Indeed!, August 28, 2005

By	Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Though there is somewhat of a sameness to the mood of this beautifully performed and recorded album of choral works that span centuries, that uniformity of message is the creative force for this survey of music by various and varied composers. The works were selected to provide a parcel of time away from the noise outside the spirit, a place for meditation and solace so desperately needed today.

Harry Christophers conducts the inordinately talented Sixteen singers with support where indicated from early instruments ensemble, The Symphony of Harmony And Invention, in an organic, crystalline, seamless range of songs from the Renaissance to the present. Works include Monteverdi, Tallis, Byrd, Palestrina, Allegri and travel through time to Bruckner, Poulenc, Taverner, Gorecki, and Barber. Each work is lovingly rendered in perfect intonation and control, setting aside the 'individual' for the sonorous, anonymous, other-worldly sound only found in the great choral works through the ages. Christophers' tempi tend toward the languorous - the 'Agnus Dei' Samuel Barber set to his famous 'Adagio for Strings' has to be the slowest on record! - but this tendency further creates a sense of spaciousness found in the great old cathedrals of Europe.

For quality of sound and polish of performance this recording has already won awards. For the food for the soul that it provides there can be no greater 'award' than successfully fulfilling its promise as being Music for Inner Peace. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, August 05

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Music, Fine Performances, November 1, 2005

By	B. Tupper (Ramona, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

First off, the title of this album is misleading. Only one of the tracks stems from the high Renaisance. The rest span from the Reformation period to contemporary. All of them are liturgical, all of a certain calm and meditative style--which could be inferred from the subtitle: "Music for Inner Peace."

But those are quibbles. The voices are excellent. The direction impeccable. The recording technique outstanding. And the program--given its self-immposed limitations of peaceful liturgical pieces--is very good. It was a stroke of programming genius to put the "miserere" of Gregorio Allegri (1582-1652) back to back with the "agnus dei" of Samuel Barber (1910-1981). The untrained ear might think the two pieces contemporary, even from the same composer, but for one trained in this genre of music, the differences of nuance are delightful and exhilirating.

I tend to prefer complete works, and listening through this album I sometimes wished for some livelier moments, but those quibbles aside, I am happy to assign a full five stars to this excellent recording. One of the advantages of a potpourri album such as this is that one gets to hear works from composers who might otherwise escape notice.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful CD, November 23, 2007

By	RacerX (JAX, FL) - See all my reviews

I heard some sample tracks on iTunes and they really had an effect on me.. had to have the rest of the album. The singing is awe-inspiring. The Sixteen is an incredible.. "singing troupe"? Whatever you call them they're great.
The one thing I noticed in the recording was a very slight humming that's not audible at normal volumes. But if you really crank it, to like 11, it becomes irritatingly noticeable. I don't think it was my stereo equipment but anything's possible.
Very good CD though. Recommended.