Edward Wickham, The Clerks' Group Ockeghem

This collection of vocal music from the late 15th century is delightfully intimate. The Clerks' Group, a small ensemble specializing in a French and Flemish repertoire, perform a bright and inspiring program. Though the dates of these early pieces are somewhat in question, their timeless beauty is not. The polyphonious rondeau of Robert Morton's 'Il Sera pour Vous' combines romance and subtle humor in the tenor's chivalric rendition of Johannes Ockeghem's 'L'Homme Arm,' within the piece.

Johannes Ockeghem (c1410 - 1497) was a composer who had one of the most far reaching impacts on the history of music. He was also the father of the musical form of the canon. So whether it is a canon by a modern composer, by Bach or by Pachabel - all these are but ripples of the impact that this man had on the destiny of Western music. However of all of the surviving works - there is a sadly lost 36 part mass cycle - the Missa Prolationum is the one that shows the grandiosity of his musical vision, his audacity and the genius of his mind perhaps far greater than any other.

The Clerks' Group is a popular a cappella singing ensemble devoted largely to Medieval and Renaissance-era vocal works. It consists of eight singers, but early on performed with as few as six. The range of most of the compositions the group performs spans from the eleventh century to the end of sixteenth century, though there are a small number of contemporary pieces that were commissioned for concert use. At the heart of the repertory are sacred works by Ockeghem, Josquin Desprez, Obrecht, Machaut, Dufay, Dunstable, and other composers of that era.

The Franco-Flemish composer, Johannes Ockeghem, sang at Antwerp at the Bourbon court before joining the French royal chapel in 1451. Ockeghem spent most of his professional life at the French chapel and his output was quite prolific. He composed 14 settings of the Mass, including one of the earliest polyphonic versions of the Requiem. Ockeghem also composed numerous motets and secular songs. He was one of the most original voices in early Renaissance polyphony and his music dazzles with its ingenuity and beauty.