Prince of Music: Choral Music of Palestrina
|
List Price: Our Price: $11.34 You Save: $7.64 (40%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $8.50 (click here) Category: Music CD See more new music releases 
|
|---|
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store
Canadian Music Store
Free Music Notes for Prince of Music: Choral Music of Palestrina
Free Music Review: Palestrina Ascends
Hit: 5 Stars
I am an active choral singer. I have been in countless ensembles, this interpretation of Palestrina (the greatest word painter of all time) is truly breathetaking. It's worth every penny and I also recommend the beyond chant albums.Free Music Review: Not on board with this approach
Hit: 3 Stars
At the risk of appearing churlish amid the various heapings of unconditional praise (much of it deserved): I'm not a fan of this style. Ensembles do a lot of "NEW" things to old music in order to differentiate themselves, and not all of it represents an improvement. Palestrina without the long ebb and flow of arching phrases is something like a Gothic cathedral without columns or flying buttresses.
Granted, Keene's group offers a refreshingly different tonal palette to the Tallis Scholars (who had more or less "flooded the zone" with their distinctive top-heavy sound at the time of this recording's release), and their intonation and ensemble are faultless. I did find refuge in some of the quieter moments that featured more conventional phrasing (Benedictus, Agnus Dei, Super flumina, Alma redemptoris e.g.). But elsewhere the lively diction and fast pacing fail to compensate for what is ultimately a plodding, note-by-note approach--one that elevates even the least important syllable above the soaring melismatic lines and taffy-pull suspensions that are the mainstay of Palestrina's timeless appeal.
More Free Music Notes:
1 2
1 2