Taverner, Mater Christi sanctissima To mark the beginning of Lent, let us consider this antiphon by the English Renaissance composer John Taverner (c. 1490-1545). Not much is known about Taverner’s life. His entry in Grove does more to debunk earlier biographical accounts than to add … Read more
Tallis, Audivi vocem The text of Audivi vocem is from the service of Matins on All Saints’ Day (November 1). This setting by Thomas Tallis makes use of the Sarum rite chant. The Sarum rite comes from Salisbury Cathedral in England. Various styles of chant … Read more
Janequin, Le chant des oiseaux The French Renaissance composer Clément Janequin (c. 1485 – 1558) may be best known for his use of onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia involves the mimicking of sounds occurring in nature—words like buzz, splash, or murmur. You probably know some longer examples with words … Read more
Byrd, Ne Irascaris Domine/Civitas Sancti Tui As I thought about using this selection by William Byrd (c. 1543-1623) as today’s performance pick, I recalled that Byrd had appeared here somewhat recently. So I looked back at the list and discovered, of course, it was during … Read more
Dufay, Supremum est mortabilus Guillaume Dufay (c. 1397-1474) was a significant figure among the composers of the Burgundian School, which included Binchois, Busnois, and Dunstaple. We have not featured any of these composers yet in this series, although we included Dufay’s music in our Early … Read more
Tallis, Spem in alium Thomas Tallis (c. 1505-1585) held positions early in his career as organist in Benedictine priories and at Canterbury Cathedral. With Henry VIII’s suppression of the monasteries in 1536-1541, Tallis found employment with the Chapel Royal. He served four monarchs and played … Read more
Holborne, Muy Linda Graduate students in music develop their own peculiar sense of humor. At least we did back in my KU days. We were thoroughly immersed in the music world. (So much so, to my chagrin, that I knew nothing of the extraordinary humanities … Read more
Gabrieli, Beata es virgo a6 Giovanni Gabrieli (1554/57 – 1612) is firmly linked with the basilica of Saint Mark’s in Venice. We addressed the architecture of the basilica and how it affected Gabrieli’s music a few years ago when we featured his Canzon septimi toni. … Read more
Josquin, Missa Pange lingua (Kyrie) How did we go so long in this series without something by Josquin Desprez (c. 1440 – 1521), universally acknowledged as one of the masters of the Renaissance? If you could listen to only one composer of sacred polyphonic music in … Read more
Byrd, Miserere mei, Deus We begin the Lenten Season on a more reflective note, especially compared to last week’s Shrovetide Fair and Petrushka. William Byrd (c. 1543-1623) made his mark on the early Elizabethan Era. He grew up in the reign of the Mary Tudor … Read more
