Tallis titillation

[Peregrine]

I know nothing about this composer. What would be key works/recordings?

[bhodges]

Here's a great starting point: a 2-CD Tallis set by the Tallis Scholars, with the famous 40-part motet  , Spem in alium.  I don't have many other Tallis recordings, but this one is excellent.

--Bruce

[Lethevich]

A nicely priced 2CD collection of motets - this is a very essential Tallis disc. It contains his Gaude Gloriosa (also on a Hyperion disc), which is significantly longer than Spem in alium, but for more standard forces, and is a tour de force in motet writing, as it doesn't flag at all over that length (a similarly long work by Sheppard that I've heard, for example, does).


A mesmerising performance of Spem, and all-round showcase for a hifi IMO (the SACD version must sound amazing). Very good recording.


This is a good foil to the Virgin Latin motets disc, as it contains only works in English, so has no overlap. The form is much the same, but less elaborate.


Shame that this seems to possibly be OOP atm, but the disc Bruce linked has these on it anyway, and is a top recommendation both on performance and price.

There is a complete recording of his works on Signum, also available in seperate volumes, but these discs mentioned cover most of his best output - his surviving music is much smaller than some of the other major composers of the Renaissance...

Edit: Just to mention - I believe the 2CD Gimell disc is a "best of", so it will duplicate some material any future Gimell Tallis discs that you may buy, for example, it includes a few works on the English Anthems disc, I think.

[Peregrine]

A marvellously erudite post Lethe, very helpful and thank-you Bruce. I'll go and have a gander over at Amazon now and see what I can muster.

My interest has been piqued from watching the Tudors on BBC2, Friday evenings...

[Peregrine]

just bagged this for starters...

[Mark]

For Tallis a little off the established path, try this:



Don't expect quite the sumptuous sound you'd get with something by Palestrina, Lobo or Cardoso: this is smaller-scale singing but with plenty of imaginative passages. The Mass for Four Voices is a beautiful (if shortened) setting, and there's a crispness and clarity to the recorded sound that does justice to the excellent ensemble work.

[Lethevich]

just bagged this for starters...

I love that sub-label, it contains some real early music gems, at affordable prices, and in great performances

[Peregrine]

Purchased for a quid, cheers Mark!

[Mark]

Purchased for a quid, cheers Mark!

No worries.

I'm listening to it now, actually, inspired by this thread. Can't have played it for about seven years - nice to give it an airing.

As I say, it's small-scale compared to a lot of other early music, so I'm going to stray OT and strongly recommend you buy this stunner:

[Peregrine]

Can't have played it for about seven years - nice to give it an airing.

That good eh?! 

[Mark]

That good eh?! 

I have too much music, mate.

[beer]

Shame that this seems to possibly be OOP atm, but the disc Bruce linked has these on it anyway, and is a top recommendation both on performance and price.

I have this album and I dont recommend it, the performers are singing in some kind of weird good meant but poorly executed lamenting style, which degrades the quality of the polyphony itself

I'd get this one instead:

It has more 'neutral' voices which makes the music come out very good, also it contains "salve intemerata' an awesome piece of work.

I also second the Spem in Alium recommendation!

[Lethevich]

I have this album and I dont recommend it, the performers are singing in some kind of weird good meant but poorly executed lamenting style, which degrades the quality of the polyphony itself

I am not generally a rabid Hilliard fan, but can't find much wrong with that disc - it is a distinctive style, and shouldn't be the only disc owned of a person really likes the works, but I didn't get such a negative reaction from it as you did

[Lethevich]

!!!!

TALLIS The Complete Works. Chapelle du Roi / Alistair Dixon. Brilliant Classics 10cds

This is the recent, much lauded and full price, Signum series of the complete works. If I had collected that (the last volumes are fairly recent) I would be mighty pissed just now........

[George]

I have too much music, mate.

The creed of GMG. 

[Peregrine]

!!!!

So is this set the proverbial 'no-brainer'? The pre-release garb at MDT has it for £22.50...

[Lethevich]

So is this set the proverbial 'no-brainer'? The pre-release garb at MDT has it for £22.50...

Yep. I will wait to check the Amazon Marketplace prices first (under £20 delivered would be nice) - but it's amazingly good value at £22. The full set retailed for £70+ before, with individual (very discounted) discs on Marketplace still totaling £50. To think that I almost bought those individual discs

[Peregrine]

Yep. I will wait to check the Amazon Marketplace prices first (under £20 delivered would be nice) - but it's amazingly good value at £22. The full set retailed for £70+ before, with individual (very discounted) discs on Marketplace still totaling £50. To think that I almost bought those individual discs

Good choice. I'm gonna' do the same, if it's £22 at full price, I can see copies ending up on Amazon for a tenner in a few months. Fingers crossed...

[Guido]

Thanks for these recommendations. Just saw this on Youtube I felt I had to investigate furthur.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvu0lrliPW0&feature=channel_page

[karlhenning]

. . . The Mass for Four Voices is a beautiful (if shortened) setting, and there's a crispness and clarity to the recorded sound that does justice to the excellent ensemble work.

Just saw this post . . . and without seeming to chide Mark (musically speaking, one readily becomes accustomed to longer-breathed, monumental settings of the Mass), it isn't so much that the Tallis setting is "shortened," as that it is meant for Liturgical use.  (It may well be a bit briefer than many other Liturgically-meant settings, all the same.)