Decca is proud to present I Fagiolini in the world-premiere recording of Alessandro Striggio's 40-part mass Ecco si beato giorno, available March 29th. The work, long rumored to exist but only recently re-discovered in Paris, possibly inspired one of the greatest works of polyphony, Tallis's Spem in alium, which is also included on the release. The album is completed by other Striggio works and is accompanied by a bonus DVD. After being released last week in the UK, the release has debuted at #1 on the Specialist Classical Chart, ending the months-long dominance of André Rieu. The album will be released in the US on March 29.
Alessandro Striggio was an Italian composer and Mantuan nobleman who split his time primarily between Mantua and Medici Florence. It is known that in 1561 he wrote a piece for choir in 40 separate parts in honor of two papal envoys and though the source specifies neither title nor location for the performance there is good reason to suppose that the song was the motet Ecce beatam lucem. In 1568 we again hear of a Striggio forty-part motet, this time entertaining guests at a banquet during the wedding celebrations of the Wittelsbach heir in Munich. Again no title is given, but the official account of the celebrations puts it beyond doubt that this was Ecce beatam lucem, a work that is widely performed and recorded, though until now with purely vocal forces.
By 1566, Striggio had composed his Mass based on Ecco sì beato giorno in forty parts. But the musical material the Mass develops is also to be found in Ecce beatam lucem, which suggests that Ecco and Ecce must have been very similar or, quite possibly, one a straight re-texting of the other. The Mass itself was believed lost until Davitt Moroney uncovered the parts in Paris very recently. This world-premiere recording reveals the mass to be a spectacularly colorful and dramatic work. The individual voices, divided into five eight-voice choirs, are each distinguishable and many are decorated or augmented with instrumental lines, including contributions from strings, brass, reeds and recorders.
The most popular 40-part work of vocal polyphony is Thomas Tallis's Spem in alium which is also included on this album though in the rarely heard version with instrumental accompaniment emphasizing the sublime harmony and rhythm of this masterpiece. Though almost nothing is known about Striggio's trip to London, it is quite likely that Tallis heard Ecco si beato giorno and wrote his masterpiece both in homage to Striggio but also as an attempt to out-perform his Italian counterpart.
Striggio's place in the history of music is not well-known by most listeners, but his influence is undeniable. I Fagiolini, the acclaimed British solo-voice ensemble which specializes in Renaissance and Contemporary music, along with their inspired programmer, Robert Hollingworth, bring this master of vocal polyphony to life in this world-premiere recording.
To enjoy the work and the performance even more, a bonus DVD is included which features a short film about Striggio's Mass and the recording as well as performances which are able to be played back in surround sound.
To learn more and hear the album:
click here.
