Bach didn't exist in a vacuum - check out this fantastic performance of Buxtehude's Membra Jesu Nostri from some friends/colleagues in DC!
Lobet den Herrn
"Lobet den Herrn" was the first of Bach's motets that I learned (with Dr. Steven Zielke and the OSU Chamber Choir) though 21-year-old me would never have believed it could sound like this!
Contrappunto bestiale alla mente
We've listened to madrigals with bird calls, but Banchieri's “Contrappunto bestiale alla mente” includes a cuckoo, an owl, a cat, and a dog!
Weep, weep mine eyes
Thomas Morley may get more attention, but madrigals by John Wilbye are my personal guilty pleasure, including this beauty featured in Tramontana's English program several years ago!
All about Josquin
"And one story has someone saying that you want to employ Isaac because he will write when you want him to — whereas Josquin will only write when he wants to, and costs twice as much." And in which choir loft did Josquin carve his name? Read more here!
The Renaissance's Most Influential Composer, 500 Years Later
Missing something?
This article is violin-focused, but the main point is true for vocal music as well as instrumental - we should all experience the glories of music pre-1700 when we're in school as a central part of the curriculum.
Palestrina's Salve Regina
I sang this gorgeous five-voice Salve Regina by Palestrina for a funeral on Saturday, and it's too beautiful not to share!
The Rule of the Octave
Early Music Sources explains The Rule of the Octave, also known as why continuo players are brilliant and worth their weight in gold.
Sicut Cervus
Palestrina's setting of "Sicut Cervus" - one of the texts for Holy Saturday - is one of his most well-known pieces, but most performances (including this one) only feature the first half!
Divini occhi sereni
What is it really like to read from part books? Take a peek here!