Search - Antoine Brumel, Huelgas Ensemble, Paul van Nevel :: Brumel: Missa 'Et ecce terrae motus'; Sequentia 'Dies irae' /Huelgas Ensemble * P van Nevel

world premiere on record

Holy Olio | Grand Rapids, MI USA | 02/06/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
When this masterpiece opens it's like the sun coming up in the mind's eye. I've had this recording since 1990 I think, and it never gets old, despite the fact that it was written in the 15th or early 16th century. Remarkably, part of the work was lost for nearly five hundred years, and its rediscovery sometime in the late 1980s made this recording possible.

Upon hearing this, it's easy to believe that Brian Wilson (of the Beach Boys) was inspired by music like this, especially when he made some comments to that effect quite a few years ago.

As one might expect from its era, this work is ecclesiastical in origin, written as a mass. It's entirely a cappella. On the other hand, the final track, "Dies trae Dies illa", is performed on trombones, is a separate work, and I find it easy to skip listening to it.

Ecclesiastical music is much more palatable to me when it is in a language I don't understand. While I find Handel's "The Messiah" stirring, I find Brumel much more satisfying. Those who enjoy "The Messiah" will also enjoy "Et ecce terrae motus", but they are not particularly similar. Also, due to the language barrier (for those who don't know Latin), there's no seasonal taint to the Brumel.

The original release has great sound quality, I would suppose that the remastered version sounds even better, and is a steal at this price, or really any other price. There appear to be a couple of other recorded versions available, but I've not heard them. I'm sure the long-overdue renewed interest in the long-dead composer is a sign of good things to come.

The booklet includes quite fascinating liner notes."