Product Description

The award-winning men's vocal ensemble Chanticleer returns to the hypnotic sounds of earlier times with this collection of works in praise of the Virgin. A fascinating variety of approaches to the great Magnificat text is represented here, from 7th century chant through the golden years of the Renaissance polyphonists Palestrina, Taverner, and Josquin, and up through the Baroque composers Monteverdi and Vasily Titov. Tracks and Notables: Ave Maria; Ave Maria, Mater Dei; Magnificat; Stabat Virgo Maria; Maria, Quid Ploras; The Angel Cried Out; Regina Caeli Laetare; Alma Redeptoris Mater; Ave Maris Stella; O Thou Joy of all the Sorrowful; Ave Regina Caelorum a 8; Ave Maria a 4; Salve Regina a 5.

Track Listing

1. Ave Maria
2. Ave Maria, Mater Dei
3. Magnificat
4. Stabat Virgo Maria (Era l'Anima Mia)
5. Maria, Quid Ploras (Dorinda, Ah Dirò Mia)
6. Angel Cried Out
7. Regina Cæli Lætare
8. Alma Redemptoris Mater
9. Ave Maris Stella
10. O Thou Joy of All the Sorrowful
11. Ave Regina Cælorum à 8
12. Are Maria à 4
13. Salve Regina à 5

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #90259 in Music
• Published on: 2000-01-01
• Released on: 2000-07-11
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
In the wake of its previous, Grammy-winning disc of contemporary madrigals (Colors of Love), the all-male a cappella ensemble that calls itself Chanticleer--in homage to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales --comes home to roost in this theme album of early music. After all, this is the territory that Chanticleer first staked out when the group banded together in 1978, and the return is most welcome. Magnificat offers manifold rewards, from the sensitive, imaginative culling of its program to the warmth and lithe interweaving of vocal layers in its execution (vividly recorded in splendid 20/24-bit process at the Skywalker Ranch)--not to mention the capsule music history that it traces. Like depictions of the Annunciation in medieval and Renaissance paintings, musical settings of texts that are centered on Mary abound during this period. Chanticleer's anthology includes familiar gems (the hymn "Ave Maris Stella"), but the group is delightfully unpredictable in many of its choices: examples of the polychoral sacred music of Russian Vasily Titov, contrafactum reworkings of two Monteverdi madrigals to Marian texts, and a full Magnificat setting by Tudor master John Taverner. The latter gives a microcosm of Chanticleer's vocal versatility, presenting stern, unadorned plainsong side-by-side with melodies that blossom like tendrils. Or listen to the ensemble's dynamic control, from the exultant climaxes of the Titov choral concerto to the achingly beautiful, held diminuendo on the second Monteverdi piece. Most impressive of all is that Chanticleer manages to avoid the bane of a cappella groups--a bland, homogenized sameness of sound--through its subtle variations in color and thoughtful musicality. A real treasure. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews

Gorgeous choral voices surrounding you
I hesitated to buy this disc until a friend told me he knew one of the members of Chanticleer; then again I also had nothing like it in my collection. The sound is rich and resonant. You should know it is recorded realistically, in a variety of soundfields, i.e. sometimes there is a processional from front to rear, sometimes choruses on upper left/right, or from all around you, depending on the material. If that sounds disconcerting be assured it isn't. This is a beautiful and soothing disc with a nice variety to it, and the sound is wonderful.

As usual an excellent performance by Chanticleer
Chanticleer is a male choir that you can safely assume that any recording will be good to excellent; one may also assume that there will be one or two astounding cuts - in this case they are to two pieces by Titov, a Russian composer of the late 17th century.

Outside the Titov and Coppini, the pieces on this album are Marian standards - well done; on this recording, the high tenor deserves especial mention.

A thoroughly enjoyable CD.

Beautiful performances and some nice surprises
This is a nice anthology of Renaissance music encompassing key composers of both the Prima and Seconda Prattica, including one or two less known names. The uniting theme is that of they are all in praise of the Virgin Mary. Most of these works are old war horses such as the Josquin Ave Maria which is beautifully performed. Their tempo for the Josquin is similar to that of the spacious approach of the Hilliard Ensemble, and unless you like this music performed at breakneck speed you will likely find this performance perfectly satisfying. If you are interested in an anthology of Renaissance music then this is a great choice, however for those of us with a strong interest in music of this period what really makes this essential listening is the two extraordinary pieces by Vasily Titov.

Titov composed at the time of Tsar Peter the Great's modernisation drive in Russia. He brought in composers from the West and Titov's music represents a marriage of the Italian compositional styles of the Seconda Prattica with the traditions of the Russian Orthodox Church. Like the grand architecture of St Petersburgs, and the Hermitage this is an fascinating mixture of Western influences with distinctly Russian ones. The twelve part polychoral writings have some of the dark solemnity of Russian Orthodox music while clearly being heavily influenced by the likes of Monteverdi, Gabrielli, Lassus and Palestrina. Perhaps a more authentically Russian approach to this music would have given far more prominence to the basses, but this still has trumendous impact. It makes it strange that there is so much interest in composers such as Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Moussorsky, Shostakovich and the like but the Early Music movement have yet to catch up with Eastern Europe - Titov is very easily their equal and I would welcome more substantial recordings devoted to exploring this neglected composer.

This is a great recording recommended both to a general audience as well as to lovers of Renaissance music alike. The recorded sound is natural and full bodied. You can pick out individual voices in the chorus without them being drowned into an amorphous porridge of sound - a sign of a good recording. Still, I have heard wider sound staging and a wider dynamic range, so for all its virtues this is almost - but not quite - audiophile quality. Clearly a SACD format DSD recording would have been preferable.