Singers: David Hurley (countertenor), Timothy Wayne-Wright (countertenor), Paul Phoenix (tenor), Christopher Bruerton (baritone), Christopher Gabbitas (baritone), Jonathan Howard (bass)
Few composers of any age have enjoyed the widespread admiration and unanimous praise of successive generations as Josquin des Prez. He is considered the greatest creator and innovator of musical composition during the Renaissance, and for some half a millennium his music has stood the test of time. He is remembered as much for his own works as for his lasting influence on those of his contemporaries and students, demonstrated in many of the compositions in tribute of ‘the master’ featured in this programme. The programme’s centrepiece is Jean Richafort’s Requiem mass (Missa pro defunctis), a tribute that employs several of Josquin’s compositional devices. This new programme was devised by leading early-music scholar and conductor David Skinner, who prepared new editions of the Renaissance works for this recording.
