The Spirit

The chamber music on this recording was likely composed during the time Jenkins was living in the homes of the Dereham and L’Estrange families. Where Lawes 'music is often edgy and bizarre in character, Jenkins' compositions from this period are clearly intended to counterbalance the uncertain and risky circumstances that prevailed during the turbulent years of the Civil War. It's not for nothing that Andrew Ashbee, the great English Jenkins connoisseur, titled his book “The Harmonious Musick of John Jenkins”.

The new album of consort music for viols in five parts by John Jenkins comes from an ensemble who has already been awarded two Diapason d’Or for their previous recordings on Musica Ficta: The Spirit of Gambo.

The Spirit of '67, Paul Revere and the Raiders' third gold-selling, Top Ten album to be released in 1966, marked the triumph of the group's in-house writing team of lead singer Mark Lindsay, Paul Revere, and producer Terry Melcher. "Hungry," the Top Ten follow-up to "Kicks," was written, like the earlier hit, by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, but Lindsay-Revere-Melcher then hit the Top 40 with "The Great Airplane Strike" and the Top Ten with "Good Thing." (Actually, Revere was not a writer on "Good Thing," as subsequent releases indicated.) Those hits anchored this collection, which was filled out by showcases for bassist Phil Volk and drummer Mark Smith (guitarist Drake Levin had been replaced by Jim Valley), plus some secondary material by the group's leaders…

Tallis Scholars are among the world's preeminent choral ensembles. Cultivating a distinctive vocal sound backed by impeccable scholarship, the group has helped raise the general level of interest in Renaissance choral music in Britain and beyond through a large catalog of recordings and numerous international tours.