Macmian The Sixteen

Rome – the ‘Eternal’ City. Once the capital of a republic and empire which defined the Western world in ancient times and left indelible imprints thereafter both physically and spiritually. A city of unparalleled beauty, a source of learning, and a capital of the arts which has inspired countless pilgrimages. A city which motivated the composers on this album (Allegri, F. Anerio, Josquin and Victoria) to create some of their finest works including one of the most famous pieces of choral music ever written – Allegri’s Miserere.

Coronation – Music for Royal Occasions spans 500 years of royal music – for celebration, for prayer and for commemoration – varying in scale from private devotion to full state coronation. The collection, featuring Tallis, Byrd, Gibbons, Purcell, Tippett and Britten, looks forward to the coronation of Charles III, and back to the ancient rituals of royal ceremonial. It also presents a new work, commissioned by the Genesis Foundation, from celebrated composer Cecilia McDowall commemorating the life of Queen Elizabeth II and celebrating her remarkable reign. Of course no such collection would be complete without examples from the four anthems Handel wrote for the coronation of George II at Westminster Abbey in 1727, of which Zadok the Priest has been performed at the coronation of every British monarch since. Much has changed since their first performance almost 300 years ago. Yet their dramatic impact and grandeur, underlined by mighty choral acclamations and regal trumpets and drums, remains supremely fit for the coronation of a new king.

Monteverdi’s sacred vocal compositions introduced the expression of powerful and personal emotions to the world of church music. Whilst it took him a number of years to find fulfilment in his work, Monteverdi was a revered composer within his lifetime and his music is regarded as revolutionary, marking the change from the Renaissance style to that of the Baroque. This album comprises some of the finest works from Monteverdi’s years as director of music at St Mark’s in Venice, published posthumously in 1650 as the Messa a quattro voci et salmi.

Whilst coming from very different eras, William Byrd and Arvo Pärt are both considered masters of sacred music despite having faced considerable persecution for their work. This programme presents six of William Byrd’s works from the Cantiones Sacrae including the monumental Tribue, Domine, and the mighty eight-voice motet Ad Dominum cum tribularer. The three works by Arvo Pärt speak in his unmistakable voice, with its unique blend of ancient and modern, and include his mesmerising Nunc dimittis which is crafted in his bell-like ‘tinitinnabuli’ style.

Vivaldi's Gloria is one of sacred musics most uplifting choral works and a joyful hymn of praise with moments ranging from festive brilliance to profound sadness. Composed in Venice, probably in 1715, for the choir of the Ospedale della Pietà, its wonderfully sunny nature and distinctive melodies and rhythms give it an immediate and universal appeal. Bach was a fierce admirer of Vivaldi's work, and his extraordinarily inventive Mass in G major complements the Gloria perfectly.

William Cornysh and Benjamin Britten were prolific writers of both sacred and secular music. Cornysh is actually two people, quite possibly father and son. Both were court musicians who excelled at writing complex and adventurous antiphons for the church, as well as beautiful secular songs for the courts of Henry VII and Henry VIII. As far as who wrote what is concerned, the truth may never be known and so here they are linked as one.

Handel’s pastoral opera is a tale of love, tragedy and liberation. The libretto by John Gay, based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses (book XIII), tells of the eternal love between the mortal shepherd Acis and goddess Galatea and how it is doomed by the jealous cyclops Polyphemus. Handel’s music beautifully demonstrates the pain and love in such beautiful, dramatic choruses as ‘Wretched lovers!’ and the grief felt by Galatea in ‘Must I my Acis still bemoan’. Staying true to the premiere in 1718, just five singers and nine instrumentalists feature on this intimate recording.