Creator of the Stars

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: William Horwood, Johannes Ockeghem, Traditional, Anonymous, Michael Praetorius, Robert Ramsey, Cipriano de Rore, William Byrd, Christian Erbach, Orlande de Lassus, Josquin Desprez

Label: Archiv

Magazine Review Date: 12/1997

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 69

Mastering:

DDD

Catalogue Number: 449 819-2AH

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
In dulci jubilo	Traditional, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium Traditional, Composer
Resonet in laudibus	Traditional, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium Traditional, Composer
Praeter rerum seriem	Anonymous, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Anonymous, Composer Pomerium
Conditor alme siderum	Anonymous, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Anonymous, Composer Pomerium
O Sapienta	Anonymous, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Anonymous, Composer Pomerium
Quem vidistis pastores	Anonymous, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Anonymous, Composer Pomerium
Alma redemptoris mater	Anonymous, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Anonymous, Composer Pomerium
In dulci jubilo, Movement: 2vv	Michael Praetorius, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Michael Praetorius, Composer Pomerium
In dulci jubilo, Movement: 3vv	Michael Praetorius, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Michael Praetorius, Composer Pomerium
In dulci jubilo, Movement: 4vv	Michael Praetorius, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Michael Praetorius, Composer Pomerium
Gradualia, Vol 2: Nativity of our Lord Jesus Chris, Movement: Introit: Puer natus est	William Byrd, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium William Byrd, Composer
Gradualia, Vol 2: Nativity of our Lord Jesus Chris, Movement: Regis Tharsis et insulae	William Byrd, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium William Byrd, Composer
Magnificat secundi toni	William Horwood, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium William Horwood, Composer
O Sapientia	Robert Ramsey, Composer Alexander Blachly, Conductor Pomerium Robert Ramsey, Composer

Author:

This Christmas disc ranges far and wide through the renaissance, from Dufay to Praetorius. The guiding thread is the transformation of plainsong into polyphony, with each piece being preceded by the chant from which it is derived. This approach introduces familiar Christmas tunes (Resonet in Laudibus and In dulci jubilo are better known to English-speaking audiences as Joseph dearest, Joseph mine and Good Christian men rejoice respectively), but also others perhaps not so familiar. Alexander Blachly views Christmas in the round, embracing not merely the Nativity itself but the events leading up to it. This wider remit allows him to include pieces like William Horwood’s Magnificat, Josquin’s Praeter rerum seriem or Ockeghem’s Alma redemptoris mater. It’s a good way to introduce unfamiliar music to a wide audience, but sceptics are bound to point out that some of it (Horwood, Dufay, Ockeghem) is not specifically associated with Christmas. In a market flooded with seasonal offerings, the onus is on ensembles to propose something distinctive. Early music groups have shown laudable invention in revitalizing this particular niche, but perhaps I won’t be alone in wondering whether Blachly overplays his hand here.
Those who recall the group’s earlier incarnation as Pomerium Musices in the 1970s (on Nonesuch) will find the tone smoother, the ensemble more homogeneous and slightly more technically accomplished. But compare their earlier recording (4/78 – nla) of Ockeghem’s Alma redemptoris mater: the trade-off is a less emphatic approach to phrasing and form, and perhaps also a loss in ensemble character. Here, I enjoyed the pieces based on German chants, but elsewhere the music’s sheer virtuosity stretches individual voices more than is comfortable: in Horwood’s Magnificat, for instance, the sopranos’ high notes are rather strained. Intonation is not quite on the level of the finest groups: the first note of Ramsey’s O Sapientia should have caused them to restart the take. What I miss most of all is the forthright direction, the willingness to take the music by the scruff of the neck, that made those earlier recordings so exciting. Pomerium is recorded at some little distance, in line with many American groups, and with its new, softer-focused image. In and of themselves, these performances have much to recommend them; as a Christmas collection, though, “Creator of the Stars” strikes an uneasy balance between celebration and mystery.FF