The Mysterious Motet Book of 1539 Siglo de Oro & Patrick Allies

• Pierre Cadéac (1538 - 1558): Salus populi ego sum:
• 1 Cadéac: Salus populi ego sum 05:09
• Jacques Arcadelt (1507 - 1568): Dum complerentur dies Pentecostes:
• 2 Arcadelt: Dum complerentur dies Pentecostes 03:37
• Johannes Lupi (1506 - 1539): Apparens Christus:
• 3 Lupi: Apparens Christus 08:28
• Adrian Willaert (1490 - 1562): Laetare sancta mater ecclesia:
• 4 Willaert: Laetare sancta mater ecclesia 04:32
• Peccavi super numerum arenae maris:
• 5 Willaert: Peccavi super numerum arenae maris 05:34
• Maistre Jhan (1485 - 1538): Pater noster – Ave Maria:
• 6 Jhan: Pater noster – Ave Maria 07:45
• Johannes Sarton: Haec dies quam fecit:
• 7 Sarton: Haec dies quam fecit 06:18
• Dominique Phinot (1510 - 1556): Exsurge quare obdormis:
• 8 Phinot: Exsurge quare obdormis 06:47
• Jhan du Billon (1534 - 1556): Postquam impleti sunt dies purgationis Mariae:
• 9 Billon: Postquam impleti sunt dies purgationis Mariae 05:39
• Simon Ferrariensis: Ave et gaude gloriosa virgo:
• 10 Ferrariensis: Ave et gaude gloriosa virgo 02:37
• Nicolas Gombert (1495 - 1560): Veni electa mea:
• 11 Gombert: Veni electa mea 05:32
• Laus Deo, pax vivis:
• 12 Gombert: Laus Deo, pax vivis 05:06
• Total Runtime 01:07:04

Info for The Mysterious Motet Book of 1539

Premiere recording: In the late 1530s, Milanese composer Hermann Matthias Werrecore assembled a collection of sacred music and sent it across the Alps to the publisher Peter Schoeffer in Strasbourg. In making the journey from staunchly Catholic Milan to newly Protestant Strasbourg, the repertoire in question became cross-confessional. What was the purpose of publishing a motet book in a German imperial city where Latin choral singing no longer took place?

Siglo de Oro have collaborated with Dr Daniel Trocmé-Latter (University of Cambridge) to showcase works from this puzzling volume, setting motets by Nicolas Gombert, Jacquet of Mantua, Jacques Arcadelt and Adrian Willaert alongside less familiar names such as Simon Ferrariensis and the enigmatic Johannes Sarton. The resulting recording exhibits the combination of meticulous musicological research and finely crafted, sonorous singing that their previous Delphian albums have led us to expect.

“Plumbing deep wells of spiritual devotion, this music meets its match in poised, committed performances of simultaneous unanimity and character ... ” (Choir and Organ)

Siglo de Oro
Patrick Allies, direction

Siglo de Oro
is one of the leading vocal ensembles of its generation, praised for its golden tone, seamless blend, and innovative programming. The group made its professional debut in 2014 at the Spitalfields Festival, of which the Financial Times said: ‘Siglo de Oro, under the assured direction of Patrick Allies, performed with vivacity and poise’. Since then, the group has given concerts at St John’s Smith Square, Stour Music and the Barber Institute, performed live on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune, and taken up invitations to give concerts in Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland and Malta. Siglo de Oro’s plans for 2020 include an appearance at Tage Alter Musik Regensburg in Germany, and the ensemble’s first US tour.

The group has made three recordings with Delphian Records, to critical acclaim. The first, released in 2016, was made a Christmas Choice by BBC Music Magazine, and called 'a debut with a difference... a novel, ungimmicky project, vividly executed’, while Gramophone described it as 'so invigorating... this one hits you with its character and depth’. The group’s second disc, featuring the world premiere recording of a mass by Hieronymus Praetorius, was released in 2018 to outstanding reviews. BBC Music Magazine awarded it five stars, made it Choral and Song Album of the Month, and said ‘Siglo de Oro has struck gold!’. The disc was placed on the longlist for the 2019 BBC Music Magazine Awards.

Patrick Allies
began his musical education as a chorister at the Temple Church in London, under Stephen Layton. He sang in Gloucester Cathedral Choir before taking up a Choral Scholarship to study Music at King’s College London, graduating in 2010 with First Class Honours. Patrick went on to postgraduate study at the University of Cambridge where he sang in Jesus College Choir. He is currently an MA student in Musicology at the University of Maryland.

Patrick is Artistic Director of Siglo de Oro, with whom he has recorded two discs with Delphian Records. Of the group’s latest release, BBC Music Magazine wrote that ‘Here is a choir in which all the elements are held in perfect equilibrium. Patrick Allies ponders every note before moulding lines whose suppleness in turn coalesce into a breathing, organic whole.’

Patrick currently divides his time between London and Washington DC. Highlights of the 2018-2019 season in the UK included a performance with Khoros Choir at the London Jazz Festival, and an Arts Council-funded collaboration with contemporary music group x.y ensemble. In the US, Patrick is a professional singer with the Choirs of St Paul’s K Street and Washington Master Chorale. He has recently taken up invitations to be a guest conductor at Christ Church Episcopal Church in Rye, New York, and to be a guest conductor and lecturer at Loras College, Iowa.

Booklet for The Mysterious Motet Book of 1539