Tenebrae presents this delicately balanced programme of unaccompanied choral music from the turn of the seventeenth century. Palestrina 500 celebrates Palestrina’s birth five hundred years ago in 1525 and, alongside the master himself, features celebrated composer Orlando de Lassus as well as lesser-known Felice Anerio. Palestrina’s iconic parody mass Missa Viri Galilaei and his setting of the Stabat Mater are punctuated by shorter works. The programme opens with Lassus’ stunning polyphonic motet Musica Dei donum, celebrating the power of music over gods, men and nature alike. Later on, Anerio’s homophonic Christus factus est acts as a brief palate-cleanser in an otherwise polyphonic feast. This hour-long programme is a true celebration of Palestrina’s genius, and of the glories of Renaissance polyphony.

Programme

Orlande de Lassus (1532 – 1594)
Musica Dei Donum

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Missa Viri Galilaei (without Creed)
Plainsong Propers interspersed between movements

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Song of Songs
– Tota pulchra es
– Sicut Lilium inter spinas
– Ave Maria

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Sicut Cervus
Sitivit anima mea

Felice Anerio (1560 – 1614)
– Ad te Levavi
– Christus factus est

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Stabat Mater

Artist(s)

Nigel Short, Tenebrae