6 October 2015
Introducing our new Christmas recording
Stile Antico is excited to introduce its new disc, A Wondrous Mystery, which is now available for UK pre-orders ahead of its UK release date of 30th October.
The group’s tenth disc on the Harmonia Mundi label, A Wondrous Mystery is a Christmas-themed recording which contrasts a sumptuous mass by the Flemish composer Clemens non Papa with a selection of infectiously joyful old-German carols. It takes its name from Jacob Handl’s startlingly chromatic motet Mirabile misterium, one of many highlights of a programme which also includes Hieronymus Praetorius’ Magnificat quinti toni interpolated with the carols Josef lieber and In dulci jubilo and music by Eccard, Hassler and Michael Praetorius.
The new disc was recorded in February 2015, immediately after a series of concert performances of this repertoire that were feted in the UK press. The Independent wrote of Stile Antico’s Wigmore Hall appearance that
This concert of Flemish and German Christmas music – all composed in the sixteenth or early seventeenth century – was choral heaven from start to finish. Its connecting thread was the Mass ‘Pastores quidnam vidistis’ by Jacob Clemens non Papa, whose sound-world effortlessly touched the sublime.
whilst the Yorkshire Post reported that the group
cleverly interleaved Clemens non Papa’s seasonal motet and dependent five-voice Mass Pastores Quidnam Vidistis? (Shepherds, what have you seen?) with German Renaissance motets on Christmas themes. It made a delightful mélange. The most splendid of the interpolations was the sumptuous eight-voice Magnificat Quinti Toni by Hieronymus Praetorius… Tuning of pin-point accuracy – a given with this group – and sensitive, but never churchy, phrasing combined appealingly. The mass itself benefited from rhythmic zest allied to a magical, but natural, flow, with climaxes clearly pointed and taut syncopation leading into cadences. When singing in German, they brought an earthier, even beefy, approach to a style with close affinities to the English madrigal. In barely ten years, Stile Antico has become the gold standard in this repertory.
Whilst Stile Antico’s recordings are widely available from high street and online retailers, discs purchased through this website directly benefit the work of the group, which is able to retain a portion of the purchase price. The new disc is competitively priced at £11.99 (+P&P), and all pre-orders will be fulfilled on or before the UK release date of 30th October.