Credits:

CAPELLA DE LA TORRE; TIBURTINA

Description:

Capella de la Torre, a German period instrument wind ensemble specializing in medieval and renaissance music, was founded in 2005 by Munich-born oboist Katharina Boiml. The name "Capella de la Torre" is a play on the name of Francisco de la Torre, a 16th century Spanish composer, and "de la Torre" (from the top of the tower), a reference to a medieval bard who played music from the top of a tower. The orchestra is almost identical to the actual musicians who were active in Nuremberg at that time, and has earned a high reputation as a professional group practicing historical performances. And the Tiburtina Ensemble, a women's voice ensemble founded in 2008 by Barbora Kabatková, is highly regarded for its research and interpretation of polyphonic music from the Middle Ages to the present day in the correct language. The music here is all related to the Virgin Mary and is the result of a joint session of these two ensembles, with music chosen as it would be heard during a mass to the Virgin Mary in a late 16th century Spanish monastery.The central piece here is Victoria's Mass, "I Saw a Beautiful Thing," in which the words "I saw a thing as beautiful as a dove rising above the stream of water. Surrounding her are roses, and lilies of the valley," the very words that evoke the Virgin Mary and are sung on her feast day. Although monophonic chants were sung daily in the monasteries during this period, interest was also directed toward polyphonic music, which incorporated polyphony, the most advanced musical form of the time. Since male singing was strictly forbidden in the monasteries, the tenor and bass parts were replaced by instruments such as trombones and reeds. The performances on this album reproduce these elements and bring back to life the beautiful music that resonated deep within the monastery at the end of the 16th century. Sony Music