Tallis Scholars to perform 40-part Striggio mass incl. 60-part agnus dei!

[Justin Ignaz Franz Bieber]

check it out:

Our fourth-ever BBC Prom takes place on July 17th at 10.00pm, when the Tallis Scholars will be joined by the BBC Singers and His Majesty's Sackbuts and Cornetts to perform multi-choir works by Tallis (yes, again), Lassus and Striggio. The Striggio element will consist not only of his 40-part motet Ecce beatam lucem but also his 40-part Mass Ecco si beato giorno, recently unearthed by Davitt Moroney. This colossus, which has a 60-part Agnus, will be performed here for the first time since the 16th century, when the music vanished. This really will be a once-in-a-lifetime event. Davitt will direct the Mass; I will direct the rest of the concert.

http://www.peterphillips.info/

now is there any doubt that the renaissance was the golden age of counterpoint/polyphony! here's more info on Striggio, the mass, how it was found & the name of Davitt Moroney's article about it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missa_sopra_Ecco_s%C3%AC_beato_giorno

Let's hope the Tallis Scholars record it at some point!

edit: it will be broadcast on bbc3 on july 17, if anyone cares

[FideLeo]

check it out:http://www.peterphillips.info/

now is there any doubt that the renaissance was the golden age of counterpoint/polyphony! here's more info on Striggio, the mass, how it was found & the name of Davitt Moroney's article about it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missa_sopra_Ecco_s%C3%AC_beato_giorno

Let's hope the Tallis Scholars record it at some point!

edit: it will be broadcast on bbc3 on july 17, if anyone cares

Thanks for the news, which is enormous (cf. the great popularity of Tallis's 40-part Spem in alium), even if the name of Davitt Moroney isn't usually associated with choral conducting of any kind.  Is he going to replace the name of Robert King in this field?   

[Josquin des Prez]

now is there any doubt that the renaissance was the golden age of counterpoint/polyphony!

Because of this? Doesn't anybody understand that anything above 4-6 voices is merely texture?

[FideLeo]

Because of this? Doesn't anybody understand that anything above 4-6 voices is merely texture?

Textures are not essential but great "structurers" apparently loved frills also - Ockeghem, Josquin et al.
"Golden ages" in art inevitably lead to extravagences of all sorts. 

[The new erato]

Because of this? Doesn't anybody understand that anything above 4-6 voices is merely texture?

From a listeners point of view I mainly agree - but the compositional challenges are great anyway.

[Mozart]

Sounds like it would be interesting, at the same time pointless.

[Josquin des Prez]

From a listeners point of view I mainly agree - but the compositional challenges are great anyway.

Not necessarely. There are basic techniques that you can use to write in counterpoint. Contemporary composer Willem Ceuleers wrote a piece for 35 voices in renaissance polyphonic style to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Heulgas Ensemble, using a theme derived from the name of the group. There are parts in this piece that are nearly indistinguishable from real Renaissance music. Does it mean Willem Ceuleers is a greater contrapuntist then Bach, who never used more then 6 voices in his works (and that only sparingly)?

It's a silly notion, really.

[BachQ]

Cool! ........

[Justin Ignaz Franz Bieber]

From a listeners point of view I mainly agree - but the compositional challenges are great anyway.

me too. size doesn't matter as far as choirs go, but 60 independent voices will be pretty impressive imho.

[bhodges]

Thanks for the fascinating news (as a longtime fan of the Tallis Scholars).  I don't know Striggio at all, so I may have to tune in on July 17.  And who knows what the 60-part segment will sound like...no one's heard it for at least 400 years...

--Bruce

[Justin Ignaz Franz Bieber]

Thanks for the fascinating news (as a longtime fan of the Tallis Scholars).  I don't know Striggio at all, so I may have to tune in on July 17.  And who knows what the 60-part segment will sound like...no one's heard it for at least 400 years...--Bruce

i don't think anybody really knew much about striggio until now. up until recently i think it was common knowledge that he allegedly inspired tallis to compose his spem in alium after performing his ecce beatam lucem in england. in fact it was after hearing striggio's OTHER 40-part work (that mass) that was performed in england that some politician challenged tallis to match it. davitt moroney's article in the latest issue of the journal of the american musicological society was very interesting. it outlines all the 'detective work' he had to do in order to find the score, and the history & politics behind it & more.

[Justin Ignaz Franz Bieber]

it's playing right now, check it out:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/promsbroadcast/radio/