Though it's not clearly indicated on the packaging, this is a compilation of music from no fewer than 10 previous CDs by the Sixteen, plus one newly recorded track (William Byrd's O Lord, make Thy servant Elizabeth). The idea, as the title suggests, is to collect pieces somehow inspired by the British monarchy, from the imposing Handel Coronation Anthems that frame the program to a cappella music including quieter pieces like the "Sanctus" from Thomas Tallis' Missa Puer natus, probably celebrating the pregnancy of Queen ...
Read More
Though it's not clearly indicated on the packaging, this is a compilation of music from no fewer than 10 previous CDs by the Sixteen, plus one newly recorded track (William Byrd's O Lord, make Thy servant Elizabeth). The idea, as the title suggests, is to collect pieces somehow inspired by the British monarchy, from the imposing Handel Coronation Anthems that frame the program to a cappella music including quieter pieces like the "Sanctus" from Thomas Tallis' Missa Puer natus, probably celebrating the pregnancy of Queen Mary in 1554. It's surprising in the Handel just how much volume 16 singers can produce, and in general the pieces are imposing in ways that befit the theme. With the exception of an excerpt from Benjamin Britten's Gloriana, marking the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953, all the pieces are from the Renaissance or Baroque periods. But the variety represented in the compilation by Robin Tyson is impressive, and the program includes such novelties as Edmund Turges' From stormy windes...
Read Less
