Abstract
Liner notes: https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA68460
Full album (Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/album/5tl1rAr9vXeY6rewkNwxul?si=1bG7SKgUSWKW2UYQcCBRIA
This CD builds on my research experience over some 30 years of putting stylistic knowledge of Renaissance polyphony into practice. Most significant has been my work (including thirteen prior recordings for Hyperion Records) with my ensemble The Binchois Consort (BC), partners on this recording. Performative research is essentially collaborative: the sense of what is plausible or even possible relies on realisation in practice and the (vocal/instrumental) mechanics of its production; these then feed back into the fund of interpretative knowledge. Hence the input of singers, themselves highly experienced practitioners, is integral to this work.
An important further collaborative strand in this instance was the reconstruction of incomplete music, which has materially affected the approach of the singers involved. The main focus of this Mass, the Missa Scaramella by Jacob Obrecht, survives today in only two part books out of the original four, a situation that necessitated reconstruction of the missing parts, a task achieved by Dr Fabrice Fitch of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Reconstructive decisions are scrutinised and refined in rehearsal, a collaborative project involving myself, the singers and the reconstructor.
A further research component of this recording concerns its acoustic, which is much closer and more intimate than is conventional on recordings of music of this period. This reflects my own research findings that the sort of polyphony heard here was most often performed not in large, cavernous spaces but in enclosed side chapels. Such spaces were characterized by small dimensions, lower ceilings than in adjoining naves, wall-mounted textiles and reed- or grass-strewn floors, plus the absorbent and often crowded bodies of clergy, musicians and attending public. To achieve this effect we recorded in an acoustically dead recording studio, with a ‘real-world’ ‘side-chapel’ acoustic added subsequently by the engineer in consultation with me.
Full album (Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/album/5tl1rAr9vXeY6rewkNwxul?si=1bG7SKgUSWKW2UYQcCBRIA
This CD builds on my research experience over some 30 years of putting stylistic knowledge of Renaissance polyphony into practice. Most significant has been my work (including thirteen prior recordings for Hyperion Records) with my ensemble The Binchois Consort (BC), partners on this recording. Performative research is essentially collaborative: the sense of what is plausible or even possible relies on realisation in practice and the (vocal/instrumental) mechanics of its production; these then feed back into the fund of interpretative knowledge. Hence the input of singers, themselves highly experienced practitioners, is integral to this work.
An important further collaborative strand in this instance was the reconstruction of incomplete music, which has materially affected the approach of the singers involved. The main focus of this Mass, the Missa Scaramella by Jacob Obrecht, survives today in only two part books out of the original four, a situation that necessitated reconstruction of the missing parts, a task achieved by Dr Fabrice Fitch of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Reconstructive decisions are scrutinised and refined in rehearsal, a collaborative project involving myself, the singers and the reconstructor.
A further research component of this recording concerns its acoustic, which is much closer and more intimate than is conventional on recordings of music of this period. This reflects my own research findings that the sort of polyphony heard here was most often performed not in large, cavernous spaces but in enclosed side chapels. Such spaces were characterized by small dimensions, lower ceilings than in adjoining naves, wall-mounted textiles and reed- or grass-strewn floors, plus the absorbent and often crowded bodies of clergy, musicians and attending public. To achieve this effect we recorded in an acoustically dead recording studio, with a ‘real-world’ ‘side-chapel’ acoustic added subsequently by the engineer in consultation with me.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Hyperion Records |
| Publication status | Published - 2024 |