Search - De La Rue, Page, Gothic Voices :: Missa De Feria / Missa Sancta Dei Genitrix

Pierre de la Rue, a wonderful composer widely respected during the Renaissance, is badly underrepresented on record today. This release of two previously unrecorded works performed by Gothic Voices is quite welcome. As usual with these tremendously skilled singers, the tuning, pronunciation, and rhythmic execution are impeccable; yet something is missing. Gothic Voices specialize in late-Medieval music, a very cerebral repertory with an aesthetic very different from that of the High Renaissance--for all the group's proficiency, the lack of familiarity shows. The singing sounds a bit too studied to fully release the reverence in the "Agnus Dei" or the joy in the "Osanna"; the imitation of melodies between the parts, a major feature of the later period, sometimes seems to pass unnoticed. Still, there is a great deal to admire here (including three lovely transcriptions for lute of de la Rue motets), and the group will only get better at this repertory with time. Gothic Voices are worth hearing, on this disc as always, but to hear them at their best, try the Missa Caput or Missa Veterem hominem. For a taste of de la Rue, try the Hilliard Ensemble or Ensemble Clément Janequin. --Matthew Westphal