A support
Paul Mbelele | Perth, Western Australia | 03/25/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I work in an area where I constantly hear from people leading miserable and unhappy lives. I play this as I drive home. Byrd has something to say about suffering without feelings of revenge, dispair or hatred. I find this and the previous disc in the series very helpful. I find the music speaks directly to me and helps when you think about why even children suffer. The performances are lovely. I am no music critic but the voice of someone from 500 years ago telling me that he understands is something to be treasured."
Something different
D. Witte | Charlestown MA | 10/04/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"For a generation I have been accustomed to the standard being set by the inestimable Tallis Scholars--their icy perfection and elevated impersonality seemed to me the ideal sound for my favorite repertoire, the sacred music of the Tudor period. So I have to admit I was at first nonplussed by The Cardinall's Musick. I've been collecting their ongoing series of recordings of Byrd for some time, but this one, Hodie Simon Petrus, seems to mark a new step in the development of their sound. This is amazingly impassioned and loving singing. Their commitment is total and their love for this wonderful music shines through, and yet--and yet...I found myself sitting on the fence at first. A couple of the voices are not at all beautiful. There's a particularly strident mean who always seems a bit under the pitch and a tenor with a gargling tone, and, pace the previous reviewer, I find some of the excursions into bizarro tuning downright alarming (Check out the terrifying opening measures of Vultum Tuum, track 9 on the vol XII Assumpta est Maria disc.) This is emphatically not careful singing, and it seems to me that some of its eccentricities would work better in situ than as recordings.
Ultimately however, I'm won over by this ensemble's warmth and passionate response to the music, and I'm grateful for their mounumental work of bringing the complete Byrd opus to life, from his ornately archaic nod to Tallis (track 1) to his madrigalesque late Tudor excesses (track 12). Byrd was a Titan, and this series is overdue."
Stunningly beautiful
K. Nielsen | Chicago | 05/26/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Continuing The Cardinall's Musick's edition of William Byrd's vocal music, this recent release is a gem with many gorgeous facets. The singing is beautiful, energetic without being strident, and shining in its perfect intonation. Carwood uses some small groups from the entire ensemble for many of the pieces, and each smaller ensemble presents a beautiful blend. The only thing whicih I think could have been done better is the balance between upper and lower voices; the sound is rather treble-dominated (a feature of the recording or the group? I'm not sure), so for a better balance among the voices I boost the bass a little and the result is fine.
It is interesting to hear so many relatively unknown pieces, too; the selection on this and other releases in the same series is enlightening. My favorite works on this disc are the first work (Descendit de coelis) and the fourth (Recordare Domine). If you wish to hear some English renaissance motets from the golden era of this genre, performed in a stunningly beautiful way, this is an album to acquire."
