Robert Parsons: Sacred Music

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Carwood draws earthy, visceral performances; the ensemble's virile sound and Parsons's sinewy polyphony are a far cry from what some critics describe as the 'whitewashed', English choral tradition.... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2011 More…

Release Date: 26th Sep 2011
Catalogue No: CDA67874
Label: Hyperion
Length: 70 minutes

Gramophone Magazine

November 2011

Editor's Choice

Parsons, R: Domine, quis habitabit?

Work length5:12

$1.10

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Peccantem me quotidie

Work length3:44

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Holy Lord God Almighty

Work length3:48

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Deliver me from mine enemies

Work length2:39

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Retribue servo tuo

Work length8:05

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Solemnis urgebat dies

Work length5:39

$1.10

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Magnificat

Work length13:15

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Libera me, Domine from Responds for the Dead

Work length7:31

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Credo quod Redemptor

Work length3:32

$1.10

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: O bone Jesu

Work length11:42

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

Parsons, R: Ave Maria

Work length4:55

$1.10

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The Cardinall’s Musick
Andrew Carwood

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Gramophone award-winning ensemble The Cardinall’s Musick return to another master of the Renaissance, Robert Parsons. Very few records remain of the composer’s short life, and his musical output is often overlooked, perhaps in the shadow of the prolific William Byrd, his successor as a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal. However, his vocal writing is some of the most opulent of the period.

The Cardinall’s Musick give sublime performances of some of the composer’s most sumptuous choral works, from the remarkably sophisticated Magnificat to the dramatic O bone Jesu. As demonstrated in their previous recordings, their resonant, pure-toned singing is the perfect advocate for such exquisite polyphony. The ensemble’s seemingly effortless and magical performance of the glorious Ave Maria is the perfect conclusion to an enlightening recording.

Reviews

December 2011

Carwood draws earthy, visceral performances; the ensemble's virile sound and Parsons's sinewy polyphony are a far cry from what some critics describe as the 'whitewashed', English choral tradition. Carwood and his singers highlights the inherent drama of Parson's [sic] style...Hyperion's detailed recording, swathed in the glowing acoustic of the Fitzala Chapel, Arundel Castle, enhances these seraphic performances.

December 2011

the disc is best in the three full choir numbers: Domine quis habitabit, where sopranos inspiringly contrast high and low; Solemnis urgebat, where they cling to the eternal heaven of a high cantus firmus; and the Magnificat where their top line canons wonderfully enrich the counterpoint. The lower-voice funeral Responds have an appropriately tomblike aura.

November 2011

The Cardinall's Musick are at their best in this repertoire, and their performances have confidence and authority...Like many composers of his time and place, Parsons can be heard to navigate between different styles according to the liturgical demands placed on him. He does so surefootedly...Parsons certainly deserves the hearing that Carwood's musicians afford us, so this addition to the catalogue is very valuable.

Robert Parsons: Sacred Music

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