ASV’s groundbreaking Ockeghem series has
now been consolidated into a five CD boxed set. The Clerks’
Group and Edward Wickham set new standards in this repertoire
and devoted a six-year period to these recordings. Their reappearance
not only confirms the profound excellence of the whole undertaking
but also subtly adjusts one’s perspective of Ockeghem. In programmatic
terms one must note that some, though not all, of the original
releases placed the composer into his musico-liturgical background.
Those who may have collected the series as it was issued will
know that Ockeghem was therefore heard alongside such contemporaries
as Basiron, Barbireau, Morton and the better-known Binchois
and Brumel. No one however could reasonably complain given the
fact that we now have a single box containing over six hours
of Ockeghem performed by perhaps his most devoted interpreters.
The consistency
of interpretations is one of the greatest strengths and virtues
of the performances. The sonority of the group is perhaps best
exemplified by their performance of the Kyrie of the Missa
Mi-Mi; rock solid security in matters of technique, great
amplitude at the bottom of the compass and purity and clarity
at the top. The tempo moves with natural speed, though it’s
never too fast to obscure textual matters. The control of the
syntax is here exemplary and the group’s ability to explore
slower tempi without compromising the underlying pulse equally
so. The mass is for men’s voices and the one small criticism
I would level is that the documentation doesn’t deal with the
composition of The Clerks' Group throughout the series of recordings.
But do note the expressive intensity at about 3:00 in the Kyrie
of the Missa Prolationum which receives just as fine
a performance.
What one values
about these performances is that they are true both to the spirit
and to the letter of the works. They also include works for
some time attributed to Ockeghem. The Gaude Maria is
a rich and florid affair and is performed with a beautifully
contoured appreciation of its cresting and fall. Whoever wrote
it, it’s a most persuasive performance. The Requiem is
probably his most famous single work and it’s the centrepiece
of the third volume – thus sitting appropriately at the centre
of the five discs. The sonorities here are thrilling with intensifying
and diminishing of expressive weight to remarkable effect. The
nobility and gravity of the Offertorium are fitting indeed.
This is a powerful performance, one cemented in excellence by
the way they bring this and other works – the motets especially
– so vitally to life. Intemerata Dei mater is perhaps
one of the best examples of this universal gift. Note too the
fluent blend of voices in the Credo of Missa "Ecce Ancilla
Domini."
To this list of
superlatives it would be difficult to add. Yes, the Gloria of
the Missa "L'homme armé" is taken at a quick
tempo but it sounds right – and moreover it’s sustained with
conviction. Overwhelmingly it’s the case that these performances
reveal complex polyphonic strands that can otherwise sound vague
or unfocused – partly a question of textual clarity and a precise
understanding of the balance between voices.
There’s an attractive
booklet with the set, which stands as the single most impressive
contribution to Ockeghem on disc thus far issued.
Jonathan Woolf
The Clerks'
Group/Edward Wickham 
