NOVEMBER 2019 | In Memoriam: Commemoration Motets of the Renaissance | The Lacock Scholars

NOVEMBER 2019 | In Memoriam: Commemoration Motets of the Renaissance | The Lacock Scholars

By RAY PICOT

One of the highlights of last year’s Echoes Festival was a concert by the Lacock Scholars, under the direction of Greg Skidmore, featuring the Missa pro defunct a6 by Duarte Lobo, who was one of the most important Portuguese composers of the Renaissance. They released a recording of this major work alongside a selection of commemoration motets from the same period. In this as in all their live performances, the Scholars aim to bridge the gap between concert performance and liturgical observation.

The Lacock Scholars are a small group of male and female singers, who are drawn from past scholars on Andrew van der Beek’s courses in Lacock, Wiltshire. Under the skilled and inspired direction of Greg Skidmore, the young choir, though not professional, prove themselves to be exceptional exponents of Renaissance repertoire. Greg Skidmore was born in Canada and has a full and varied career as a consort, choral, and solo oratorio singer (baritone) alongside his burgeoning work as a conductor and workshop leader.

The music on this, their second recording, follows the outline of the concert, which was very well received by the audience. Over the course of the last year I have found this recording conveys the devotional and emotional aspects of the music very convincingly, noting perhaps how much of this important piece, owes something to Victoria’s famous Requiem of 1603. Lobo’s Requiem is also a very good example of ‘alternatim’ composition, reflecting the alternation of chant and polyphony sections, so they become finely intwined.

The celebrated Portuguese composer, Duarte Lobo (c.1565 to 1646), held the post of Mestre de capela at the cathedral in Lisbon, from about 1591 until at least 1639, and contributed to the flourishing Renaissance music tradition. His music was widely performed in his lifetime, which is confirmed by the publication of this Requiem Mass in Antwerp by Plantin alongside other compositions. Sadly it is likely that much of Lobo’s music was lost in the earthquake of 1755 which destroyed much of Lisbon.

In this recording of Lobo’s six-voice Requiem (written almost two decades after his eight-voice Requiem) Greg Skidmore and the Lacock Scolars, intersperse the movements of the mass with very well chosen commemoration motets, by Renaissance luminaries Josquin des Prez, Nicolas Gombert, Jacobus Vaet, Wiliam Byrd and Thomas Weelkes. These pieces add to the atmosphere most effectively without distracting from the beauties of Lobo’s work, which one easily programme to play straight through. As the programme notes comment, these motets were written on the occasion of the death of another composer, who perhaps was a friend, colleague, mentor or student. The CD helpfully cross-refers the motets to the memorialised composer. Also the texts of the pieces can be read from the Scholars’ excellent website, from where one can also buy the recording.( lacockscholars.org )

There have been no more than a handful of recordings of this Requiem over the last 25 or so years, which tend to be of the Requiem only and not contrasting motets, and this newcomer deserves to be heard. The acoustic is very natural, with an excellent balance between the varying groups of voices, which is in no small part due to the considerable expertise of the recording engineer, David Hinitt and producer William Whitehead.

The singers clearly have this piece under their belts, which is evident from their meticulous articulation both individually and as a group. The rich polyphonic textures are contrasted beautifully with solo lines, with admirable pacing, which compares very favourably with the commercial alternatives. I thought the alternating single voices in the Dies Irae particularly effective. Overall I found this recording of the Requiem to be very involving and the motets also of intrinsic interest, so overall I can give this a warm recommendation.


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News News Archive Concert Reviews CD Reviews Musicology Newsletter	NOVEMBER 2019 \| In Memoriam: Commemoration Motets of the Renaissance \| The Lacock Scholars NOVEMBER 2019 \| In Memoriam: Commemoration Motets of the Renaissance \| The Lacock Scholars By RAY PICOT One of the highlights of last year’s Echoes Festival was a concert by the Lacock Scholars, under the direction of Greg Skidmore, featuring the Missa pro defunct a6 by Duarte Lobo, who was one of the most important Portuguese composers of the Renaissance. They released a recording of this major work alongside a selection of commemoration motets from the same period. In this as in all their live performances, the Scholars aim to bridge the gap between concert performance and liturgical observation. The Lacock Scholars are a small group of male and female singers, who are drawn from past scholars on Andrew van der Beek’s courses in Lacock, Wiltshire. Under the skilled and inspired direction of Greg Skidmore, the young choir, though not professional, prove themselves to be exceptional exponents of Renaissance repertoire. Greg Skidmore was born in Canada and has a full and varied career as a consort, choral, and solo oratorio singer (baritone) alongside his burgeoning work as a conductor and workshop leader. The music on this, their second recording, follows the outline of the concert, which was very well received by the audience. Over the course of the last year I have found this recording conveys the devotional and emotional aspects of the music very convincingly, noting perhaps how much of this important piece, owes something to Victoria’s famous Requiem of 1603. Lobo’s Requiem is also a very good example of ‘alternatim’ composition, reflecting the alternation of chant and polyphony sections, so they become finely intwined. The celebrated Portuguese composer, Duarte Lobo (c.1565 to 1646), held the post of Mestre de capela at the cathedral in Lisbon, from about 1591 until at least 1639, and contributed to the flourishing Renaissance music tradition. His music was widely performed in his lifetime, which is confirmed by the publication of this Requiem Mass in Antwerp by Plantin alongside other compositions. Sadly it is likely that much of Lobo’s music was lost in the earthquake of 1755 which destroyed much of Lisbon. In this recording of Lobo’s six-voice Requiem (written almost two decades after his eight-voice Requiem) Greg Skidmore and the Lacock Scolars, intersperse the movements of the mass with very well chosen commemoration motets, by Renaissance luminaries Josquin des Prez, Nicolas Gombert, Jacobus Vaet, Wiliam Byrd and Thomas Weelkes. These pieces add to the atmosphere most effectively without distracting from the beauties of Lobo’s work, which one easily programme to play straight through. As the programme notes comment, these motets were written on the occasion of the death of another composer, who perhaps was a friend, colleague, mentor or student. The CD helpfully cross-refers the motets to the memorialised composer. Also the texts of the pieces can be read from the Scholars’ excellent website, from where one can also buy the recording.( lacockscholars.org ) There have been no more than a handful of recordings of this Requiem over the last 25 or so years, which tend to be of the Requiem only and not contrasting motets, and this newcomer deserves to be heard. The acoustic is very natural, with an excellent balance between the varying groups of voices, which is in no small part due to the considerable expertise of the recording engineer, David Hinitt and producer William Whitehead. The singers clearly have this piece under their belts, which is evident from their meticulous articulation both individually and as a group. The rich polyphonic textures are contrasted beautifully with solo lines, with admirable pacing, which compares very favourably with the commercial alternatives. I thought the alternating single voices in the Dies Irae particularly effective. Overall I found this recording of the Requiem to be very involving and the motets also of intrinsic interest, so overall I can give this a warm recommendation. Site design and content copyright © 1998-2023 The Iberian and Latin American Music Society, all rights reserved. ILAMS is a registered charity, No. 1092749