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The fifth volume of the works of Tallis is devoted to
polyphonic hymns and responds not included in Volume 4, and is completed
by Tallis’s liturgical organ music. There are five hymns and three antiphons
for the Divine Office, an Alleluia for the Lady Mass and an extended setting
of the offertory Felix namque for organ only.
As before with these forces the performances are exemplary,
indeed the choral singing is the best I have heard in this series; there
is still a suspicion of "hootiness" from the alto parts, but
otherwise the balance and standard are everything one could wish. The
first six items are sung by four- or five-part choir where the sopranos
are notable for the purity of their tone. As before, the diction is very
good, the ambience helps, and above all the ensemble and attack could
not be bettered. Comparing Audivi vocem and Te lucis ante terminum I with
Jeremy Summerly’s Oxford Camerata on Naxos (8.550576) who sing a semitone
lower, I am afraid the differences are cruelly exposed. The Oxford group’s
entries at times seem hesitant, and they flatten by a further semitone
in the first piece. Also the plainchant is sung by the upper voices, which
strikes a false note. The Theatre of Voices on Harmonia Mundi HMU 907154
make a better impression with Te lucis ante terminum II, at the same pitch
as the Chapelle du Roi, but again theirs is a larger choir, so the performances
sound smoother. I am not sure I like this approach, the bite of the smaller
forces is missing.
The twelve liturgical settings are sung by male voices,
partly as plainchant or otherwise as faburdens (which verses were composed
by Dr. John Caldwell, who also wrote the booklet entries on this section).
The difficulty encountered was that a lot of the original keyboard music
has been lost, and a fair amount of reconstruction has been necessary.
Needless to say, this has been done in the most tasteful and scholarly
manner and the reasons and arguments for the presentation are well explained
in the booklet. The Chapel at Knole House has been chosen for the recording
as it has possibly the oldest playable organ in England, and is thought
to have been built around the 1620s. Certainly its age is beginning to
show and the registration is very limited. Pedalling is needed for the
bellows, and presumably a knee lever for the volume. The effect is probably
as near as one will get to the sound that Tallis knew, but in longer pieces
such as the Offertory Felix namque the sound and extravagant ornamentation
becomes somewhat unrelieved by its sameness. This however is not the fault
of the organist, Andrew Benson-Wilson, who gets excellent results. From
his notes in the booklet it sounds as if several difficulties were encountered!
The research and presentation of the items is excellent
and the booklet is a mine of information both on the music and the performances.
My criticism remains that the numbers of voices in any particular item
is not shown, and there is also a glaring misprint on the booklet cover
of "Liturical"!(sic). These apart the whole is better than the
production of its parts and keeps up the high standards of the previous
volumes. More is eagerly awaited.
John Portwood
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Audivi
vocem de coelo
Candidi
facti sunt
Honor
virtus et potestas
Homo
quidam fecit coenam
Te
lucis ante terminum (ferial)
Te
lucis ante terminum (festal)
Natus
est nobis hodie
Veni
redemptor gentium
Jam
lucis orto sidere
Ecce
tempus idoneum
Ex
more docti mistico
Clarifica
me pater
Clarifica
me pater (II)
Clarifica
me pater (III)
Gloria
tibi trinitas
Iste
confessor
Alleluia:
per te Dei genitrix
Felix
namque (II)
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Chapelle du Roi/Alastair
Dixon 