There are two primary purposes for a recording: to document and, in the strict sense, to entertain. This very well sung and vividly recorded program seeks to strike a fair balance between both by presenting lively and technically polished performances of works associated with the first 150 years of Oxford’s All Souls College, spanning the 15th and 16th centuries. This perhaps necessarily entails the inclusion of some very obscure pieces by composers such as Henry V (!), Leonel Power, and Nicholas Sturgeon alongside those by some very famous names–Dunstaple, Tallis, Sheppard, and Tye. As the program progresses chronologically we hear an interesting jump in sheer compositional quality–from Power’s functional Credo and Sturgeon’s rudimentary Salve mater Domine to the infinitely more involving and highly refined works of Dunstaple, Walter Lambe, and Richard Davy. But we also hear stylistic changes, from plainchant to elaborate Latin-texted polyphony, interrupted by the simpler English-language forms arising from the protestant Act of Uniformity under Archbishop Cranmer. You’ll discover some gems such as Davy’s magnificent 15-minute-long O Domine celi terreque next to more familiar works–Tallis’ Verily, verily I say unto you, Sheppard’s Christ our Paschal Lamb, Robert Parsons’ Ave Maria, and Robert White’s Lamentations.
The 11 mixed voices of The Cardinall’s Musick, several of whom are familiar names on the London choral music scene and all of whom are experts in performance of early choral repertoire, present clear, absolutely in tune, musically thoughtful, and technically polished interpretations of the 14 selections, faithfully captured in the shimmering acoustic of All Souls College Chapel. The performance of White’s Lamentations is outstanding–it’s the disc’s highlight and the best reason to own the recording. The truth is, recordings of these pieces are few and scarce, and although we’re getting a pretty serious history lesson here, the careful programming and first rate performances stand on their own, never letting us forget the fact that we’re also enjoying a fine concert.
