In his recording of Thomas Tallis' Spem in alium, conductor Jeremy Summerly once again achieves a masterful performance of early music. Summerly and the Oxford Camerata have many Naxos recordings to their credit, including performances of Palestrina's Missa Papae Marcelli, Hildegard von Bingen's Heavenly Revelations, William Byrd's Masses for Four and Five Voices, and de Machaut's La Messe de Nostr Dame. The group brings experience and finesse to its latest album.
The life of Thomas Tallis (ca. 1505-1585) spanned the religious shift from Catholicism to Protestantism that England underwent during the reign of Henry VIII and his children. Tallis moved between both spheres, as each successive monarch required. He composed Latin masses under Henry VIII, English anthems under the Protestant Edward VI, Latin hymns under the Catholic Queen Mary, and a mixture of both Latin and English text music under the Protestant Queen Elizabeth. Tallis is noted for employing melodic lines that sound almost speech-like, highlighting the voices' natural range and inflection.
Thomas Tallis' most well-beloved works are a setting of Lamantations (from the Hebrew Scriptures) and the 40-voice motet, Spem in alium. The latter is featured on this album as the piece de resistance . The full sound that yet maintains a distinct purity of tone is achieved by using eight five-voice choirs. Quite possibly the work was originally used to commemorate Queen Elizabeth's 40th birthday, which occurred in 1573.
The other works on this CD include compositions from Tallis' various periods. Drawing from the Latin liturgy, the album progresses with Salve intemareta and another four-part Missa salve intemerata (which uses the Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei texts from the Ordinary of the Latin mass). The set closes with three English anthems: "With all our heart," "Discomfort them," and "I call and cry to thee, O Lord."
