Singing In Secret
Marian Consort, Rory McCleery
Perhaps the ideal consort for this repertoire, the Marians bring an intimate, individually passionate flavour to Byrd’s Latin works. Nimble, lively vocal colour, warmth in the soprano (all too...
Singing In Secret
Marian Consort, Rory McCleery
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Perhaps the ideal consort for this repertoire, the Marians bring an intimate, individually passionate flavour to Byrd’s Latin works. Nimble, lively vocal colour, warmth in the soprano (all too...
About
In the turbulent religious climate of Elizabethan England William Byrd wrote — and, more audaciously, published — a huge amount of music for the Catholic rite, for services which he and his fellow Catholics had to celebrate clandestinely, in the private houses and chapels of sympathetic noblemen.
The cloistered intimacy of those occasions is reenacted in The Marian Consort's performances here, and their programme also explores the more coded ways in which Byrd was able to express his faith and his commitment to the recusant cause: settings of texts which had become associated with Jesuit martyrs, or biblical pleas for divine intervention which took on new, heightened meaning in these times of persecution.
Most moving of all is the motet Infelix ego, with Byrd weaving in homages to a still-intact tradition of Continental composers stretching back a century and a half as the text arcs from dejection and misery to repentance and finally hope, made manifest in music of transformative power.
Contents and tracklist
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Awards and reviews
May 2020
Perhaps the ideal consort for this repertoire, the Marians bring an intimate, individually passionate flavour to Byrd’s Latin works. Nimble, lively vocal colour, warmth in the soprano (all too rare among UK groups) and word appreciation are core characteristics of this finely honed ensemble.
Early Music Review 30th March 2020
This unfolds as a superb recording of some of Byrd’s most celebrated music … Infelix ego emerges triumphant.
April 2020
Everything is sung with meticulous attention to detail and flawless ensemble and tuning. But let me not give the impression that these performances are mere exercises in studied perfection. On the contrary, the singing is full of feeling and spirit. Rory McCleery and his ensemble seem completely attuned to Byrd’s music and thoughts.
13th April 2020
This disc includes a choice selection of motets defiant and poignant, opening with a movingly intimate performance of the anguished Miserere mei, interspersing the sequence with separate movements of the Mass for Four Voices and ending with a shapely reading of the great six-part Infelix ego.
4th April 2020
McCleery's band of singers offer a sublime homogeneity offset by sharpened individuality among the voices ... just enough to inject a telling fragility into music that once had to be sung while watching one's back.
9th April 2020
The thing that hits you instantly is the special sound of the group, which is soft edged and warm … a thrilling ending to a wonderful disc.
The Herald (Glasgow) 4th April 2020
This is an exquisite Easter release of profound music, superbly sung. Never mind the short-lived promise of floral bouquets and chocolate eggs, it is surely the ideal seasonal gift for music-lovers of any faith, or none at all.
