Recordings of Renaissance sacred polyphony may generally be divided into those displaying sensuous surface beauty and those embodying the latest research, but this gorgeous Spanish disc (with mostly English performers) scores on both counts. Francisco Guerrero (ca. 1528-1599) was a composer active in Seville, a student of and successor to Cristóbal de Morales. He is less well-known than either Morales or Tomás Luis de Victoria, and his works are still being uncovered -- this recording contains three hymns by the young ...
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Recordings of Renaissance sacred polyphony may generally be divided into those displaying sensuous surface beauty and those embodying the latest research, but this gorgeous Spanish disc (with mostly English performers) scores on both counts. Francisco Guerrero (ca. 1528-1599) was a composer active in Seville, a student of and successor to Cristóbal de Morales. He is less well-known than either Morales or Tomás Luis de Victoria, and his works are still being uncovered -- this recording contains three hymns by the young Guerrero, discovered in manuscript by conductor Michael Noone. The program contains a mass, the Missa Super Flumina Babylonis (or River of Babylon Mass), a cantus firmus mass interspersed with hymns, plainchant, and a few instrumental pieces. The separation of the mass sections is in line with the way they would originally have been performed. The mass is accompanied by an instrumental ensemble -- the British group His Majesty's Sagbutts and Cornetts -- while the hymns are sung a...
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