Pieces I'm entranced by at the moment...

[carlos]

Hi Vaarky, I would suggest Jorge Moreira's Stabat Mater:

http://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Stab ... e_Moreira)

My choir sang it in the first semester and we loved it. It goes in a crescendo until it reaches a wonderful climax in the fourth part ("Virgo virginum praeclara"). But it may be a bit too long for your group's taste, perhaps.

[vaarky]

Thanks for the suggestion! Not too long at all. I'll ask to try it this week.

[luis henriques]

I'm at the moment with a lot of polyphony from Évora Cathedral Music School:
Mateus d'Aranda
Estêvão de Brito - The authenticity of the Stabat Mater which is not from Estêvão de Brito...
Other motets from Estêvão de Brito
The edition of 2 great motets by Estêvâo Lopes Morago (Oculi Mei and De Profundis)
which I hope to publish soon here on CPDL.

Well, I'm entranced with a lot of music from Évora... hope You all know a little of this Iberian center of polyphony.

All the best,

L.H.

[vaarky]

I'd love to try some of these pieces--thanks for the suggestion. It looks like on Sept. 23 you filled out the addscore form for Ajuva Nos Deus by d'Aranda, but there was no uploaded score, and no reply to the Sept. 30 e-mail inquiry about it. Can you resubmit that score so the upload can be completed? It would be great to have that piece available!

[luis henriques]

Oh I replied via PM. I had editing problems adding the original notation at the beginning of the score, and also with the ficta. I'll will upload it as soon as I finish some other project that I'm working on.

[vaarky]

Ah, thanks--hadn't realized I'd gotten a PM through this forum. Let us know if we can be of help when the time comes...

[SIR]

Sorry this is a year late, and too late for finding the score for this season- however there is next year.
The mystical side of Christmas is served by the great Fayrfax festal Mass [satbb]"Tecum Principium" based on a Sarum chant. Denis Stevens ed. in Chorwerk is available.
Unmatched is DesPres: Praeter Rerum Seriem [saatbb]- many eds.- I like john Hetland's <www.streetsingers.org>,Also the Lassus Magnificat & deRore Mass[a`7] based upon same.
Nicolle des celliers/ Pierre d'Hesdin: Epiphaniam Domino Canamus[ssttb] cf Hetland,- masterful canonic treatment with 'trancendental harmonies'.
Loyset Pieton: O Beata Infantia {ssaatb/saattb] in var eds. Sourced I believe from the Gombert works. About the sacred dirty diaper, etc.-beautiful.
Happy Holidays
SIR
<www.renaissancechorus.org>

[vaarky]

Never too late--I'm happy to have this be an on-going topic.

Thanks for all the great suggestions. Renaissance sacred music is my favorite.

I got to sing the O Beata Infantia recently and was again wowed. I'm also a big fan of the Josquin Praeter (and the Hetland editions are definitely dearest to my heart). I've sung the Lassus Magnificat PrRerum but don't remember it, and the Rore is queued up for a time when we have the right mix of voices on hand--we'll probably get those in the same session. I also have the Hetland edition of the Hesdin and look forward to trying it. Will try to track down the Fayrfax (big fan o' Fayrfax). Really appreciate the recommendations.

Have I raved lately about Willaert's Inviolata a 7? Also: Aston's O baptista vates christi. Well worth getting acquainted with both these pieces IMO.

Non-Renaissance pieces I particularly enjoyed during the last concert season: Nystedt's O Crux, and Joe Gregorio's Dona Nobis Pacem for 7 voices I think (anyone who likes the Biebl Ave Maria will likely enjoy the Gregorio).

Hope everyone's getting in a lot of singing this holiday season!

[vaarky]

Also:

Carlos, thanks for suggesting the Moreira--we sang it and thought it was quite nice.

Drew, finally got a chance to listen to Odi et Amo--nifty work!

[DrewE]

Lately I've been on a kick for "What Wondrous Love Is This," partly from (re-)discovering a very well-done recording of it on one of my LPs. Oddly, the liner notes ascribe the piece to William Billings (!), although as far as I can tell it is the version from Walker's Southern Harmony where it is ascribed to James Christopher. Billings predates that by several decades...and I've not seen any other references to him as the composer of the song, so I suspect the liner notes are in error. Regardless, it's a great recording, building in force with each succeeding verse.

For those curious, the recording is Musical Heritage Society MHS 1126, American Colonial Christmas Music, by the Berkeley Chamber Singers, recorded October 1970 at Calvary Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, CA.

[vaarky]

Sounds like a nifty piece. I asked Helene Whitson of the San Francisco Bay Area Choral Archive about whether there's any grain to the the Billings attribution. Here's her reply in case it's of interest:

"The writer is correct about James Christopher. I have Southern Harmony, and
'What Wondrous Love' is attributed to Christopher. I looked in several of
my American music reference books, and they all call 'What Wondrous Love' a
Southern folk hymn. They mention that the folk hymns often were based on
folk tunes/songs. None of them attribute this piece to Billings. One lists
Christopher."

[vaarky]

PatriciaVanNess.com, scores free to download, but see note about letting her know about any performances. Especially liked Caritas and also Populus. Also sang through Cor (both her original edition and the Kings Singers one for comparison--preferred her original one).

[vaarky]

Dufay Rite Majorem Jacobus (amazing recording by Huelgas Ensemble!). I've already put in a request at CPDL and will be checking a nearby library whose online catalog (grr...) doesn't list what compositions are in the Dufay scores they have.

[luis henriques]

At the moment I'm doing some "huge" works:
Clément Janequin - Le Chant des Oiseaux, La Guerre(Verdelot's upgrade )
Mateo Flecha "El Viejo" - La Bomba
and... Morley's First Book of Madrigals (1594)

Really great stuff!

[vaarky]

Thanks for posting about these. I love the c,d,e, e-e-d-e-f-f e,c theme from La Bomba. I'm looking forward to digging up the Janequin, which I'm not familiar with.