Josquin and his followers

2021 was Josquin year: he died exactly 500 years ago. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic that did not really come off, but Josquin hardly needs a special occasion: he is one of the most frequently-performed composers of the renaissance period. However, several discs have been released which were connected to the commemoration, and one of them is the recording by The Gesualdo Six on Hyperion [1]. The title, "Josquin's legacy", is a little confusing: a legacy is something of later generations, but in the programme we also find pieces by contemporaries, such as Heinrich Isaac, and the programme starts with a work by Johannes Ockeghem, who was of a previous generation, and is considered the father of the Franco-Flemish school. The liner-notes even open with Carlo Gesualdo, the composer from whom the ensemble's name has been derived. The reason is that he spent some time at the court in Ferrara, and that is the thread of this programme: the composers included in it worked for some time at that court too, but then much earlier. That does not go for Ockeghem; the inclusion of his motet Intemerata Dei mater may have been inspired by his state as the start of an impressive school of composers. It is followed by Josquin's famous lament on his death, Nymphes des bois. Such tributes were quite common: there is another one in the programme: Jean Mouton's chanson Qui ne regrettoit on the death of Antoine de Févin, following the motet Nesciens mater which is attributed to the latter. Another way of paying tribute to a colleague was quoting one of his pieces, as is the case in Josquin's motet Tu solus qui facis mirabilia, in which he quotes one of Ockeghem's chansons.

Ferrara was also the birthplace of Antonio Savonarola, who played a crucial role in Florence, where he was executed in 1498. Adrian Willaert's Infelix ego is a setting of a text by Savonarola, and a part of one of his meditations is set by Isaac in Esto mihi.

Otherwise, there are also connections in the field of composition techniques, such as the use of canons - sometimes double canons - as well as various imitation techniques, the use of canti firmi and the writing of duets. To what extent such techniques were of Josquin's making is hard to decide. It seems that they were just in the air, and applied by several composers at the same time. However, there can be little doubt that Josquin was widely admired among his peers and certainly inspired some of them, and certainly composers of a later generation.

The Gesualdo Six strictly perform with one voice per part, and this results in an optimum transparency, which makes it possible to follow the lines of the polyphonic web. The performances are well thought-over, such as the decision to perform Absalon fili mi, attributed to Josquin, but probably written by Pierre de La Rue, at the low pitch at which it is written, which emphasizes its mournful content. The ensemble consists of beautiful voices, which blend perfectly. This is a disc no lover of renaissance polyphony should miss.

The second disc, "The Golden Renaissance: Josquin Desprez", has also been released at the occasion of the commemoration of Josquin's death. It seems that Stile Antico [2] aimed at presenting a musical portrait of the master. This may explain the inclusion of two secular works. They represent a part of renaissance music that is not exactly the ensemble's core business. That shows: the performances of the chanson Vivrai je tousjours and the Italian song El grillo are not very convincing. The first is too solemn, also due to the acoustic. In both several voices are not free of audible vibrato. The choice of these pieces is unlucky too: the chanson is, according to David Fallows in the New Josquin Edition, "a work of extremely dubious authenticity", and there are also strong doubts about the authorship of the Italian song. Stile Antico should have confined itself to the sacred part of Josquin's oeuvre.

The thread is the Missa Pange lingua, based on the plainchant hymn for the Feast of Corpus Christi, whose text is attributed to Thomas of Aquino. Masses can be performed in different ways. An ensemble like The Tallis Scholars, which recorded Josquin's complete masses, usually performs them as a unity, without any liturgical elements. Here the sections of the mass are separated by other pieces, but not in a way to suggest a liturgical setting. In the mass, Kyrie and Gloria are always performed without any interruption. Here they are separated by the motet Ave Maria ... virgo serena, without any doubt Josquin's most famous work. There are also motets between Gloria and Credo, and between Sanctus-Benedictus and Agnus Dei. The two secular pieces are placed between Credo and Sanctus, which is very odd.

The disc ends with two laments on Josquin's death, by Hieronymus Vinders (O mors inevitabilis) and by Jacquet de Mantua. The latter's content is rather hard to interpret; the text it is a mixture of sacred and secular elements.

The singing of the sacred music is of the usual high level. It is remarkable how the ensemble has been able to keep its standard in the course of its existence. From that angle this disc is an attractive proposition for each lover of renaissance polyphony. As mentioned, I am less happy with some features of this disc. The title is a little confusing: it seems to suggest that it is referring to a series of recordings, apparently marking the switch from Harmonia mundi to Decca. I am not sure that it is an improvement.

The oeuvre of Josquin attracts much attention and a concert with his works guarantees a full house. I don't think that a concert entirely devoted to music by Nicolas Gombert [3] causes as much excitement. He was a prolific composer and highly admired in his time; he also greatly influenced other composers. However, in our time he is certainly not neglected, but seldom makes the headlines in programmes of festivals, for instance.

One reason may be - apart from the fact that he shares the fate of others that he is overshadowed by Josquin - that his music is very dense. New Grove says: "Gombert’s phrases frequently overlap, and his dense-textured style allows each voice only short rests at the ends of phrases; Finck was probably referring to Josquin’s familiar technique of alternating pairs of voices and thus giving extended rests to the inactive pair. Gombert's name is now practically synonymous with pervading imitation, which he used more consistently than anyone else of his own or any earlier generation." The result is a lack of transparency, which makes it hard to discern individual lines, and less differentiation in the scoring. That may make listening to his music a rather demanding, probably even tiring affair. The singers don't have many opportunities to relax, and neither have the listeners. Another factor may be, as Bernard Trebuch states in the liner-notes to the recording reviewed here, "the almost total absence of any relationship between music and text". It is used as an argument not to include the lyrics, which is disappointing.

The label fra bernardo has given much attention to Gombert: the production reviewed here is the third, like the previous two consisting of two discs. This label's predecessor, as it were, was the ORF Edition Alte Musik, and this also released three discs with music by Gombert. In all productions, the motets are dominating. They are, according to New Grove, his most representative works, and also consitute the largest section of his oeuvre: over 160 motets are attributed to Gombert. They attest to the characteristics mentioned above. In my experience it is advisable not to listen to a whole disc at a stretch. A careful selection of motets for one sitting may help to appreciate Gombert's motets.

It is a bit odd that the latest release includes several motets that are also part of one of the previous volumes. The recordings in Vol. 3 are new, but some motets take more time here than in the previous volumes, although the ensemble is the same. I am generally happy with these performances. The singers (ATTTTBarBarB) show a good command of legato, and the voices blend well. Whereas in other ensembles the upper voices are often dominating, here the lower ones grow to full stature. It is just that sometimes the singing is marred by little dynamic swellings on single notes, something one would expect in baroque music. Given the overall quality of the performances, it is a minor issue.

Each year sees the release of discs with polyphony from the renaissance period. The discography of this part of the repertoire is impressive, but there are still many white spots. Now and then a disc with music by a relatively unknown master is released, but even in the oeuvre of the best-known composers there are pieces that are not available on disc. The masses by Jean Mouton are a case in point. Stephen Rice, the director of The Brabant Ensemble [4], in the liner-notes to his recording of Mouton's Missa Faulte d'argent, mentions that the majority of his extant fifteen masses have not been recorded as yet. The same undoubtedly goes for his more than 100 motets. He also composed 25 chansons, which seem to be nearly overlooked. Rice returned to Mouton, having recorded another disc about ten years before. That is against his principles: "[We] have only rarely returned to a composer, if only because so much Renaissance music of high quality still remains unheard." This is praiseworthy. However, the commemoration of Mouton's death in 1522 was a good reason to make an exception. And if we take into account that most of Mouton's masses still wait to be recorded, the addition of the Missa Faulte d'argent to the discography is most welcome. It is based on a chanson, which has been attributed to Josquin Desprez, but his authorship is questionable. The first four notes are a motif that returns regularly in different shapes and in different parts in this mass. A very clear disposition of it can be heard at the beginning of the Sanctus. The listener is well advised to read the liner-notes, which give much information about the way Mouton has set the text.

That also goes for the motets. Interesting are, for instance, the motets Confitemini Domino and Benedicam Dominum, which are both based on two canons. In Gaude virgo Katherina, written in honour of St Katherine of Alexandria, Mouton often writes duets, whereas in O quam fulges in aetheris he applies a device that often turns up in his oeuvre: the refrain. Although text expression was not the aim of composers of his generation, here and there one can find traces of it. Returning to the mass: whereas composers often add a voice in the Agnus Dei, Mouton does not; even so, he gives this part of the mass special attention. The ending is quite impressive, with a very long pedal point in the soprano, starting seven breves before the end. That is a challenge to the singers, but they succeed with flying colours. It is an indication of the level of singing here. Despite the density of the counterpoint, the transparency is such that one can follow individual lines. The variety within Mouton's sacred works also comes off convincingly. This disc is an impressive testimony of the quality of Mouton's sacred oeuvre.

[1] "Josquin's Legacy"
The Gesualdo Six/Owain Park
Hyperion CDA68379 (© 2021) details

[2] "The Golden Renaissance: Josquin Desprez"
Stile Antico
Decca 4851340) (© 2021) details

[3] Gombert: "Motets 3"
Beauty Farm
fra bernardo fb 2231711 (© 2022) details

[4] Mouton: "Missa Faulte d'argent & Motets"
The Brabant Ensemble/Stephen Rice
Hyperion CDA68385 (© 2022) details