Pro Cantione Antiqua
Encyclopedia
Pro Cantione Antiqua of London are a British choral group who were founded in 1968 by Tenor James Griffett, Counter-tenor Paul Esswood
, and conductor and producer Mark Brown. From an early stage they were closely associated with conductor and musicologist Bruno Turner
. Arguably, they were the leading British performers of a cappella
music, especially early music, prior to the founding of the Tallis Scholars
.
Singers have included:
Paul Esswood
Paul Esswood is an English countertenor. He is best known for his singing in Bach cantatas and the operas of Handel and Monteverdi. Along with his countrymen Alfred Deller and James Bowman, he led the revival of countertenor singing in modern times.Esswood was born in West Bridgford, England. He...
, and conductor and producer Mark Brown. From an early stage they were closely associated with conductor and musicologist Bruno Turner
Bruno Turner
Bruno Turner is a British musicologist, choral conductor, broadcaster, publisher and businessman.-Life:The son of a motor spares magnate, Turner went on holiday to Sweden shortly after the Second World War...
. Arguably, they were the leading British performers of a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
music, especially early music, prior to the founding of the Tallis Scholars
Tallis Scholars
The Tallis Scholars are a British vocal ensemble normally consisting of two singers per part, with a core group of ten singers.Formed in 1973 by their director Peter Phillips, they specialise in performing a cappella sacred vocal music written during the Renaissance by composers from all over Europe...
.
Singers have included:
- countertenors: James Bowman, Timothy Penrose, Paul EsswoodPaul EsswoodPaul Esswood is an English countertenor. He is best known for his singing in Bach cantatas and the operas of Handel and Monteverdi. Along with his countrymen Alfred Deller and James Bowman, he led the revival of countertenor singing in modern times.Esswood was born in West Bridgford, England. He...
, Kevin Smith, Michael ChanceMichael ChanceMichael Chance CBE is an English countertenor.Chance was born in Penn, Buckinghamshire, into a musical family. After growing up as a chorister he attended Eton College, Berkshire, and later King's College, Cambridge...
, Ashley Stafford, Richard Hill and Charles Brett. - tenors: James Griffett, James Lewington, Ian PartridgeIan PartridgeIan Partridge CBE is a retired English lyric tenor, whose repertoire ranged from Monteverdi, Bach and Handel, the Elizabethan lute songs, German, French and English songs, through to Schoenberg, Weill and Britten, and on to contemporary works. He formed a renowned vocal-piano duo with his sister...
, Ian Thompson and Andrew CarwoodAndrew CarwoodAndrew Carwood is the Director of Music at St Paul's Cathedral in London and director of his own group, The Cardinall's Musick.-Biography:He was educated at The John Lyon School, Harrow and was a choral scholar in the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge under Dr George Guest, a lay clerk at...
. - basses: David Beavan, Brian Etheridge, Michael George, Christopher Keyte, Christopher Underwood, Stephen Roberts, David Thomas and Adrian Peacock.
- Though principally an all-male group they have supplemented with female voices where appropriate (eg for the 1978 recordings OUP 151/2 under Philip LedgerPhilip LedgerSir Philip Ledger CBE is a British classical musician and academic. He is best-known for his tenure as director of the Choir of King's College, Cambridge between 1973 and 1982 and as director of Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama from 1982 until his retirement in 2001...
, to accompany The Oxford Book of English Madrigals)
Archiv
Their 6-LP set 'The Flowering of Renaissance Polyphony' (Geistliche Musik der Renaissance') issued on Archiv in the late 1970s was particularly influential. This was subsequently reissued with other material for Archiv as 7-CD:- CD1: John DunstableJohn DunstableJohn Dunstaple was an English composer of polyphonic music of the late medieval era and early Renaissance...
, Guillaume DufayGuillaume DufayGuillaume Dufay was a Franco-Flemish composer of the early Renaissance. As the central figure in the Burgundian School, he was the most famous and influential composer in Europe in the mid-15th century.-Early life:From the evidence of his will, he was probably born in Beersel, in the vicinity of...
, Gilles BinchoisGilles BinchoisGilles de Binche , also known as Gilles de Bins , was a Franco-Flemish composer, one of the earliest members of the Burgundian School, and one of the three most famous composers of the early 15th century...
: Motets - CD2: Antoine BusnoisAntoine BusnoisAntoine Busnois was a French composer and poet of the early Renaissance Burgundian School. While also noted as a composer of sacred music, such as motets, he was one of the most renowned 15th-century composers of secular chansons...
, Josquin des PrezJosquin Des PrezJosquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
: Masses - CD3: Ockeghem Missa "Pro defunctis" - DesprezDesprezDesprez or des Prez is a surname, and may refer to:* Frank Desprez* Josquin des Prez* Louis Desprez* Louis Jean Desprez...
Two motets - Jacob ObrechtJacob ObrechtJacob Obrecht was a Flemish composer of the Renaissance. He was the most famous composer of masses in Europe in the late 15th century, being eclipsed by only Josquin des Prez after his death.-Life:... - CD4: La RuePierre de La RuePierre de la Rue , called Piersson, was a Franco-Flemish composer and singer of the Renaissance. A member of the same generation as Josquin des Prez, and a long associate of the Habsburg-Burgundian musical chapel, he ranks with Agricola, Brumel, Compère, Isaac, Obrecht, and Weerbeke as one of the...
, IsaacHeinrich IsaacHeinrich Isaac was a Franco-Flemish Renaissance composer of south Netherlandish origin. He wrote masses, motets, songs , and instrumental music. A significant contemporary of Josquin des Prez, Isaac influenced the development of music in Germany...
, BrumelAntoine BrumelAntoine Brumel was a French composer. He was one of the first renowned French members of the Franco-Flemish school of the Renaissance, and, after Josquin des Prez, was one of the most influential composers of his generation....
, MoutonJean MoutonJean Mouton was a French composer of the Renaissance. He was famous both for his motets, which are among the most refined of the time, and for being the teacher of Adrian Willaert, one of the founders of the Venetian School....
, CompèreLoyset CompèreLoyset Compère was a French composer of the Renaissance. Of the same generation as Josquin des Prez, he was one of the most significant composers of motets and chansons of that era, and one of the first musicians to bring the light Italianate Renaissance style to France.-Life:His exact place of...
Motets - CD5: GombertNicolas GombertNicolas Gombert was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance. He was one of the most famous and influential composers between Josquin des Prez and Palestrina, and best represents the fully developed, complex polyphonic style of this period in music history.-Life:Details of his early life are...
, Arcadelt, WillaertAdrian WillaertAdrian Willaert was a Flemish composer of the Renaissance and founder of the Venetian School. He was one of the most representative members of the generation of northern composers who moved to Italy and transplanted the polyphonic Franco-Flemish style there....
, Clemens non PapaJacob Clemens non PapaJacobus Clemens non Papa was a Flemish composer of the Renaissance based for most of his life in Flanders...
, RoreCipriano de RoreCipriano de Rore was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance, active in Italy...
, Handl-GallusJacobus GallusJacobus Gallus Carniolus was a late Renaissance composer of Slovenian ethnicity...
, De MontePhilippe de MontePhilippe de Monte , sometimes known as Philippus de Monte, was a Flemish composer of the late Renaissance. He was a member of the 3rd generation madrigalists and wrote more madrigals than any other composer of the time...
, VindersJheronimus VindersJheronimus Vinders was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance, active at Ghent. He was a minor member of the generation after Josquin des Prez, and he also composed a notable lament on the more famous composer's death.Next to nothing is known about his life, except that he was the...
: Motets. - CD6: Lassus 2 Penitential Psalms. PalestrinaPalestrinaPalestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
Motets. - CD7: MoralesCristóbal de MoralesCristóbal de Morales was a Spanish composer of the Renaissance. He is generally considered to be the most influential Spanish composer before Victoria.- Life :...
Motets, PalestrinaPalestrinaPalestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
Missa "Aeterna Christi munera" - The Triumphs of Oriana Pro Cantione Antiqua directed by Ian Partridge DC Archiv 2533 237 35 Madrigals
DHM
- Musik der Tudor Zeit. DHM
- Ockeghem Missa Ecce Ancilla Domini DHM
- William ByrdWilliam ByrdWilliam Byrd was an English composer of the Renaissance. He wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard and consort music.-Provenance:Knowledge of Byrd's biography expanded in the late 20th century, thanks largely...
Mass for 4 voices. - Josquin des PrezJosquin Des PrezJosquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
(1440–1521) Motets. Benedicta es coelorum regina; Tu solus qui facis mirabilia; ominus regnavit; Ave Maria, virgo serena; Miserere mei Deus; Inviolata, integra et casta es, Maria. Tölzer Knabenchor, Pro Cantione Antiqua, Collegium Aureum, DHM - Weihnachtsgesänge des 15.Jahrhunderts. Christmas songs of the 15th Century. Pro Cantione Antiqua. Turner. DHM
- Lassus Missa Puisque J'Ay Perdu. Musica Dei Donum. Lauda Sion Salvatorem Pro Cantione Antiqua, Turner DHM
- Lassus Requiem DHM
- Tomás Luis de VictoriaTomás Luis de VictoriaTomás Luis de Victoria, sometimes Italianised as da Vittoria , was the most famous composer of the 16th century in Spain, and one of the most important composers of the Counter-Reformation, along with Giovanni da Palestrina and Orlando di Lasso. Victoria was not only a composer, but also an...
Tenebrae Responsories DHM.
Hyperion
- PalestrinaPalestrinaPalestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
Canticum canticorum. Turner Hyperion. - Lassus. Works for Easter 2CD. Hyperion
- Francisco de PeñalosaFrancisco de PeñalosaFrancisco de Peñalosa was a Spanish composer of the middle Renaissance.-Life:He was born in Talavera de la Reina in the province of Toledo. He spent most of his career in Seville, serving as the maestro di capilla, though he also spent time in Burgos, and three years in Rome at the papal chapel...
(1470–1537) Complete motets. Bruno Turner. Hyperion. reissued Helios 2009 - Music of the Portuguese renaissance. Diogo Dias MelgásDiogo Dias MelgásDiogo Dias Melgás was a Portuguese composer of polyphony.-Life:Diogo Dias Melgás was born in Cuba, Alentejo, on 14 April 1638. He was a choirboy at the Colégio da Claustra in Évora in 1646...
, Esteban López MoragoEsteban López MoragoEstêvão Lopes Morago was a Spanish born composer who studied, lived, worked and died in Portugal. He is one of the most important polyphonists in the music history of Portugal...
. Pro Cantione Antiqua, Brown. Hyperion.
Carlton
- PalestrinaPalestrinaPalestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
Missa Papae Marcelli Stabat Mater;Missa l'Homme Arme. Alma Redemptoris Mater. Peccantem Me Quotidie Pro Cantione Antiqua, Lamentations. Bruno Turner, Mark Brown. Carlton. Reissued Alto 1CD. Reissued Brilliant 5CD. - Gregorian chant.
- Sing we pleasure. Madrigals Wilbye, Weelkes, Gibbons, Farnaby, Byrd, Morley, Tomkins, Greaves, Farmer, Kirbye, Ward, Bennet, East, Bateson Pro Cantione Antiqua. reissue Alto.
- Tears and Lamentations. Browne, Pygott, Davy, Sheryngham, Banastir, Cornyshe, Whyte, Anonymous. reissued Regis.
- The Edwardian gentleman's songbook. Ballads & Glees von Bishop, Stevenson, Hatton, Smart, Stanfort, Paxton, Somerville, Bridge, Foster, Sullivan. James Griffett, Pro Cantione Antiqua. Carlton. Reissue Alto.
Other labels
- El Siglo de oro - Spanische Kirchenmusik der Renaissance. VictoriaTomás Luis de VictoriaTomás Luis de Victoria, sometimes Italianised as da Vittoria , was the most famous composer of the 16th century in Spain, and one of the most important composers of the Counter-Reformation, along with Giovanni da Palestrina and Orlando di Lasso. Victoria was not only a composer, but also an...
, Guerrero, LoboAlonso LoboAlonso Lobo was a Spanish composer of the late Renaissance. Although not as famous as Tomás Luís de Victoria, he was highly regarded at the time, and Victoria himself considered him to be his equal....
, Esquivel, CeballosRodrigo de CeballosRodrigo de Ceballos was a Spanish composer.He was born in Aracena , and was ordained a priest in Seville in 1556. He was named maestro di capella in Malaga in 1554, in the cathedral of Córdoba in 1556, and in Royal Chapel of Granada in 1561.He is among the composers of the Andalusian school,...
, Pro Cantione Antiqua, Turner 2 CDs Das Alte Werk, Teldec. - Purcell in the Ale House. Part-Songs by Purcell, Ravenscroft, Bennet, Pearce, Browne, Isham, Dowland, Campion, Pilkington, Coleman Brown, Partridge, Wilson. Pro Cantione Antiqua Teldec. reissue Apex.
- Monteverdi Vespers. 2CD Pro Cantione Antiqua, Knabenchor Hannover, Collegium Aureum, Musica Fiata, dir Hennig. Ars Musici.
- Pietro Allori (1925–1985), Sacred works. Mark Brown
External links
- Gregorian Feast musicweb-international.com 2005