This second album in the Naked Byrd series by Britain's a cappella Armonico Consort is, like its predecessor, devoted only slightly to the music of William Byrd. Instead, in the words of annotator Adam Binks, it is "a second compilation of music stimulated by overpowering feelings and potent sentiments that have the power to move and inspire the listener." It's not really clear what this means; the Latin and English texts of these pieces of sacred music are generally conventional and include several settings of the most ...
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This second album in the Naked Byrd series by Britain's a cappella Armonico Consort is, like its predecessor, devoted only slightly to the music of William Byrd. Instead, in the words of annotator Adam Binks, it is "a second compilation of music stimulated by overpowering feelings and potent sentiments that have the power to move and inspire the listener." It's not really clear what this means; the Latin and English texts of these pieces of sacred music are generally conventional and include several settings of the most conventional text of all, the Catholic mass. Take it as a marketing blurb. What's on offer here is not intense expression but the representation of intense expression through sensuous vocal textures. The Armonico Consort, with between 10 and 14 members depending on the work involved, cultivates a sort of shimmering sound in which the vibrato of individual voices bleeds through but does not muddy the clear choral sound. It's quite something to hear, and, when applied at a consistent...
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