This Belgian recording by the Choeur de Chambre de Namur (Namur Chamber Choir) provides fresh testimony to the vigor of the early Baroque scene. What we have here is a small, local choir involved in an ambitious attempt to reconstruct something of the career of a composer whose works are mostly lost. Mateo Romero, born Mathieu Romarin in Liège around 1575, was brought to Spain and given the Iberian version of his name. He served at the court of Spain's Philip III and later became a clerk in the Order of the Golden Fleece, ...
Read More
This Belgian recording by the Choeur de Chambre de Namur (Namur Chamber Choir) provides fresh testimony to the vigor of the early Baroque scene. What we have here is a small, local choir involved in an ambitious attempt to reconstruct something of the career of a composer whose works are mostly lost. Mateo Romero, born Mathieu Romarin in Liège around 1575, was brought to Spain and given the Iberian version of his name. He served at the court of Spain's Philip III and later became a clerk in the Order of the Golden Fleece, apparently with substantial musical responsibilities. Much of his output was lost in a 1734 fire, and an earthquake in 1755 finished off other manuscripts. This disc combines parts of several surviving pieces to try to give an idea of how Romero's music might have been used in a large, festive situation: this Office pour l'Ordre de la Toison d'Or (Offices for the Order of the Golden Fleece) includes music by Romero that could have been used in a celebration of the Feast of St. Andrew,...
Read Less