The Tudors at Prayer
By Ralph Graves
Though the theme is somewhat narrowly defined, (English sacred music xx-xx), there’s a surprising amount of variety in this program. Henry VIII created the Anglican church, though it had very little change on the sacred music John Tavener and Thomas Tallis composed. His daughter, Mary I, reinstated the Catholic church, and the music of her time by William Mundi and Robert White, reflect that return to tradition. Elizabeth I, like her father an ardent music-lover, brought back the Anglican church, and the sacred music of her time seems more cosmopolitan, somehow. The sacred works of William Byrd don’t follow quite follow tradition as closely.
Magnificat performs all these works with appropriate interpretation, making it easier to hear the subtle differences between works written for monarchs with conflicting agendas.The sound is spacious, as befitting the chapels and cathedrals for which these works were written, with just enough ambiance to make the ensemble sound full, without obscuring the contrapuntal lines within.
The Tudors at Prayer
William Byrd, Thomas Tallis, Robert White, William Munday, John Tavener
Magnificat; Philip Cave, director
Lynn
