Purcell Complete Anthems & Services, Vol.8
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Henry Purcell
Genre:
Vocal
Label: Hyperion
Magazine Review Date: 10/1994
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 65
Mastering:
Stereo
DDD
Catalogue Number: CDA66686
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer James Bowman, Alto King's Consort Choir Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor |
| Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer King's Consort Choir Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor Rogers Covey-Crump, Tenor |
| Morning and Evening Service, Movement: Morning Service: |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Eamonn O'Dwyer, Treble/boy soprano Henry Purcell, Composer James Bowman, Alto King's Consort Choir Mark Kennedy, Treble/boy soprano Mark Milhofer, Tenor Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor |
| Jehova, quam multi sunt hostes mei |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer King's Consort Choir Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor |
| Full of wrath, his threatening breath |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer Robert King, Conductor |
| Bow down thine ear, O Lord |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer King's Consort Choir Mark Kennedy, Treble/boy soprano Mark Padmore, Tenor Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor |
| Evening Service |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Eamonn O'Dwyer, Treble/boy soprano Henry Purcell, Composer James Bowman, Alto King's Consort Choir Mark Kennedy, Treble/boy soprano Mark Milhofer, Tenor Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor |
| Be merciful unto me |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Charles Daniels, Tenor Henry Purcell, Composer King's Consort Choir Michael George, Bass Robert King, Conductor Rogers Covey-Crump, Tenor |
| They that go down to the sea in ships |
Henry Purcell, Composer
(The) King's Consort Henry Purcell, Composer James Bowman, Alto King's Consort Choir Michael George, Bass |
Author: Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
Five verse anthems, two canticles, a devotional song and Purcell's remarkable oratorian 'motet', Jehova, quam multi sunt hostes, comprise the eighth volume in Robert King's revelatory church music tour of the near-tercentenarian genius. King has sought throughout this series to rediscover the kind of set-up which the composer would have experienced at the Chapel Royal—even down to similar recruiting drives for quality trebles (eight senior choral 'foundations' are represented here). Re-creation alone, however, cannot produce lasting musicianship and the imaginative archaeology exercised in this project has shone most clearly when, paradoxically, clouded by musical nuances of the 'here and now'; where historical fidelity is put firmly in its place as only a means to an end. If one can detect an increasing conviction as the series has progressed, then that has as much to do with a growing familiarity with Purcell's sacred style as a conscious decision to characterize the music as skilfully as possible. The first verse anthem, In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust, is a variable work (too long) but persuasively rendered here, courtesy of some beautifully judged verses from the established team of soloists. Not only that, the music is allowed to breathe easily—not always the case in this series—and each section is fluidly handled. There are a number of works where Purcell is guilty of drifting from one fairly inconsequential and superficial section to the next, but the reverse can strike the listener with telling effect. Here, Purcell masterfully juxtaposes the sprightly dance with reflective passages of great elegance. The string ritornello sections are gracefully phrased, if not quite intimate enough for my taste.
Of the three works recorded for the first time, Bow down thine ear is a pearl with its lithe Jacobean-style opening and sense of horizontal continuity, despite several contemporary baroque twists which sit nobly before the antiquated backcloth. The four soloists are wonderfully captured here, if not so satisfactorily in Blessed is the man where the definition of the soloists is lost in crucial places. Of two established masterpieces here, Jehova and They that go down to the sea in ships are both compelling. Jehova starts with a finely gauged sense of mystery, the sound is pleasingly wholesome (if occasionally forced) and one is instantly struck by King's steamy, passionate view of this motet. The immediate stillness at the section ''Ego cubui'' is not perhaps ideally caught and I wished for only 50 per cent of the theorbo plucks. All that said, this is a highly enjoyable performance of the piece which is only bettered by Michael George and James Bowman in They that go down. Although not as explosive as David Thomas for Preston on Archiv, George demonstrates a plausible alternative to the traditional bluff of Purcell's famous bass, John Gostling—an altogether sleeker artist emerges here but Davy Jones's locker is no less forbidding.'
Of the three works recorded for the first time, Bow down thine ear is a pearl with its lithe Jacobean-style opening and sense of horizontal continuity, despite several contemporary baroque twists which sit nobly before the antiquated backcloth. The four soloists are wonderfully captured here, if not so satisfactorily in Blessed is the man where the definition of the soloists is lost in crucial places. Of two established masterpieces here, Jehova and They that go down to the sea in ships are both compelling. Jehova starts with a finely gauged sense of mystery, the sound is pleasingly wholesome (if occasionally forced) and one is instantly struck by King's steamy, passionate view of this motet. The immediate stillness at the section ''Ego cubui'' is not perhaps ideally caught and I wished for only 50 per cent of the theorbo plucks. All that said, this is a highly enjoyable performance of the piece which is only bettered by Michael George and James Bowman in They that go down. Although not as explosive as David Thomas for Preston on Archiv, George demonstrates a plausible alternative to the traditional bluff of Purcell's famous bass, John Gostling—an altogether sleeker artist emerges here but Davy Jones's locker is no less forbidding.'
Purcell Complete Anthems & Services, Vol.8
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