Guillaume Dufay
Missa Puisque je vis
01. Kyrie (5:14)
02. Gloria (6:29)
03. Credo (8:34)
04. Sanctus (5:27)
05. Benedictus (3:00)
06. Agnus Dei (5:54)

Loyset Compère
07. Omnium bonorum plena (10:32)

Anonymous
08. Concede nobis, Domine (7:18)
09. Salve maris stella (7:57)

Guillaume Dufay
10. Ave regina caelorum (7:50)

The Binchois Consort
Andrew Kirkman – conductor

This recording contains the Missa Puisque je vis, almost certainly by Dufay, and Compère’s Omnium bonorum plena written in praise of the Virgin Mary, as well as motets by Dufay and other sources, all of which help colour our increasing awareness of the florid richness and emotional devotion of music before Baroque, till recently the starting point of most people’s awareness of the art. Characteristics of Dufay are his intricate workmanship and the development of independent balance among the vocal parts that lead us naturally to the satisfying clarity which has itself given old music a strangely contemporary feel.

The Binchois Consort, under their founder Andrew Kirkman, has a special affinity with the music of Dufay, for it was to perform Dufay that the ensemble was initially founded. That first outing formed the basis of their continuing award-winning exploration on Hyperion of 15th-century music, in particular the worlds of French and English music during the so-called Burgundian period. ---hyperion-records.co.uk

Whether or not the Missa Puisque je vis was in fact written by Guillaume Dufay (a matter of some serious debate), its sublime sonorities and masterfully spun and seamlessly integrated lines are convincing enough, and the eight male voices of the Binchois Consort imbue it with such warm, vibrant sound, allowing its rhythms and phrases their natural-as-breathing flow, that we listeners can be perfectly happy no matter who was its author. We do know that Dufay composed the motet Ave regina celorum, the piece that closes this program, and it is one of the most exquisite works of 15th-century vocal music, the composer's "personal invocation to the Virgin" that he requested "be sung by the choirboys and three men" at his death. Certainly, anyone who heard this would have been moved by its compelling melodic beauty and the poignancy of the harmonic writing, with its moments of striking major/minor contrasts.

The disc is completed by three motets, two anonymous and the third an interesting work by Loyset Compère. The latter is based on a secular song, but its text is an entreaty to the Virgin, a prayer "for the salvation of those who sing." Several such figures are mentioned by name, including Dufay, Busnois, Ockeghem, and Des Pres, with a final plea for Compère himself. Again, the music's expressive beauty makes a powerful effect, employing varied textures, opulent harmonies, and often lively rhythms. The singing is uniformly excellent, characterized not only by purity of tone and clarity of lines, but by the rich and complex colors produced by the combined voices. Hyperion's sound, from London's renowned All Saints, Tooting church, couldn't be better.---David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

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Mass for Saint James the Greater
1     Introit     4:28
2     Kyrie     5:26
3     Gloria     4:48
4     Alleluia     5:20
5     Credo     8:40
6     Offertory     3:41
7     Sanctus     4:16
8     Agnus Dei     2:42
9     Communio     1:55

10     Motet  Rite Majorem Jacobum Canamus / Arcibus Summis Miseri Reclusi     4:22
11     Motet Balsamus et Munda Cera     4:34
12     Gloria     5:52
13     Credo     6:52
14     Motet Apostolo Glorioso     3:47

Alto Vocals I – David Gould (5), Mark Chambers (3)
Alto Vocals II – Fergus McLusky, Robin Tyson
Tenor Vocals I – Chris Watson, James Gilchrist
Tenor Vocals II – Andrew Carwood, Edwin Simpson

The Binchois Consort
Andrew Kirkman - Chorus Master

Recorded in Rickmansworth Masonic School Chapel on 16-18 July 1997.

The centerpiece of this Binchois Consort disc for Hyperion is Guillaume Dufay's enormous Missa Sancta Jacobi (or Mass of St. James the Greater) heard here in the nine-movement version from Bologna manuscript Q15 in a performance lasting 41 minutes. Dufay's music for St. James comes from early in his career, and chronologically this disc runs from the Gloria/Credo pair (1426) to the motet Balsamus et munda cera (1431), written in honor of St. Andrew, with the mass setting falling in between (1427). Balsamus et munda cera was performed on April 7, 1431, and Joan of Arc was burned at the stake on May 30, so that gives you an idea of the immensely distant historical context under discussion. These years often found Dufay in Northern Italy, and the mass may have been written for Bishop Pietro Emiliani of Vicenza, who served as patron to a number of other important composers of the day.

The other pieces serve to illuminate and illustrate the larger work they are coupled with; one may require repeated hearings of this disc before one truly gets a handle on Dufay's flowing, constantly busy contrapuntal texture. These pieces are monuments of the early Renaissance, and Binchois Consort brings out the almost symphonic texture of Dufay's music. For listeners well attuned to the ars nova in need of a grip on what distinguishes it from slightly more progressive trends, Andrew Kirkman and Binchois Consort's Dufay: Music for St. James the Greater is just about the "perfect" answer to such a question. --- Uncle Dave Lewis, AllMusic Review

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Movements from the Ordinary of the Mass
1. Kyrie 11
2. Gloria 5
3. Credo 1
4. Sanctus 3
5. Sanctus papale
6. Gloria ad modum tubae

Motets and Liturgical Pieces
7. Lamentatio sanctae matris ecclesiae Constantinopolitanae
8. Ave Regina Caelorum
9. Mittit ad Virginem
10. Veni Creator Spiritus (Hymnus in Penticostes festo)

Secular works
11. Quel fronte signorille (Ballata)
12. J'atendray tant qu'il vous playra (Rondeau)
13. Se la face ay pale (Ballade)

Capella Antiqua München
Konrad Ruhland – conductor

The life and music of Guillaume Dufay (1397-1474) are among the most difficult to circumscribe for major Renaissance composers. One point of clarity is that Dufay was considered by far the leading composer of his day, a musician of almost unparalleled eminence, and one of the most famous men of his generation. Dufay's large and varied musical output, its extent only now coming into focus in some cases, acted to define the new musical style of the early-to-mid-fifteenth century and with it the course of Western music into the High Renaissance. Dufay's influence over musical composition was complete and permanent, affecting every genre and sphere. The singularity of his eminence can best be compared to that of Beethoven or perhaps Machaut, but in fact Dufay had the broader contemporary reputation.

Dufay was born near Cambrai around 1400, with recent documentary evidence presented by Alejandro Planchart suggesting the precise year 1397. As is typical for the era, the events of his early life are unclear, including an apparent apprenticeship with Richard Loqueville (d.1418) and appointments both in Italy and around Cambrai. By the mid-1420s, Dufay was already one of the most famous composers in Europe, having composed such landmark works as Adieu ces bons vins de Lannoys (in 3 parts) and Apostolo glorioso (in 5 parts), two of many compositions for which a specific historical occasion can be identified. The outlines of his career begin to take on greater clarity by 1428 when he was appointed to the Papal Choir, where he remained until 1433. The extent of Dufay's compositional activity during this period, including both hymns and plainchant along with more dramatic isorhythmic motets such as Ecclesie militantis (also in 5 parts), is only now being fully appraised. In the 1430s, Dufay is associated with some of the most important musical events in Italy, in Ferrara, Savoy, Florence, etc. By 1440, he returned to Cambrai to take up one of his absentee posts, only to go back to spend most of the 1450s in Savoy, and then return permanently to Cambrai. He continued composing there, including the cantilena motet Ave regina celorum (in 4 parts) as specified to be performed at his deathbed. Together with his activities as a composer, Dufay was a man of broad ability. He was a doctor of canon law, and was summoned to consult on numerous ecclesiastical events. He had documented contact with such other famous musical names as Binchois, Ockeghem and Squarcialupi, and owned various prebends and benefices over a broad area. By the time he settled permanently in Cambrai, he was a rich and powerful man, a truly cosmopolitan figure of keen judgement and broad influence.

The survival of individual pieces within Dufay's impressive musical output has been somewhat haphazard. However, the many harmonized chants he wrote mostly early in his career form the bulk of it. These consist of frequently straight-forward elaborations on plainchant, setting it in a harmonic context. Although relatively simple music, Dufay's gift for beautiful melody and clear harmonic direction is frequently evident. This repertory, much of it associated with the Vatican, also gives a historical indication of the increased role of liturgical polyphony during the period. In addition, it has been discovered that Dufay wrote plainchant himself, further broadening the scope of his output. During this period, Dufay also wrote a wide range of secular songs as well as various mass sections and complex isorhythmic motets for special occasions. The songs are among his most consistent and characteristic creations, with nearly a hundred of them surviving from all stages of his career. Together with those of Binchois, Dufay's songs are among the most charming and indicative compositions of the early Renaissance, especially as they reflect more vertically-oriented textures and compact phrasings than those of the previous generation. Dufay's early songs already show this style with full mastery, illustrating his most facile & exuberant command of melody and counterpoint.

Both the mass movements and motets can be divided into two fairly distinct styles. Some are highly technical isorhythmic works evocative of the music of the previous generation, and some are more closely allied to his simpler chant harmonizations. Dufay was the last great exponent of the isorhythmic style, and his large-scale festival motets such as Nuper rosarum flores (in 4 parts) are among the most spectacular creations of the period. This is the area in which Dufay's music most directly continues that of the previous generation, and it is also an area in which his stylistic development is clear. The mass movements in particular show a progression from isolated works of varying complexity, to partially linked cycles, to cycles linked in relatively simple ways, to the four "cantus firmus" masses of Dufay's late career. These cantus firmus masses in four parts are his most famous works today, and were apparently instrumental in solidifying the position of this genre as central to the development of fifteenth century music. Dufay's style in these masses can be viewed as a combination of the complex & angular isorhythmic technique with the more fluid & straight-forward hymn writing. This was an important synthesis which he accomplished in some of his late motets (called "cantilena" motets to distinguish them from the isorhythmic variety), as well as in the later mass cycles such as the Missa Ecce ancilla Domini and Missa Ave regina celorum. They represent the definitive style followed by the next generations.

Detailing a specific individual style for Dufay is difficult, especially as his music naturally groups itself into different genres for completely different purposes. Within these genres, his works are frequently similar, although there is usually variety under the surface, especially in the songs. Dufay's music is sometimes described as following previous patterns, with a masterful sense of melody and counterpoint. Such a simple description neglects the synthesis he achieved, as well as the differing technical motivation for earlier counterpoint. However, Dufay's melodic gifts and influence are unquestioned. Although his polyphony may seem less "full" to our ears than that of subsequent generations, its grace and beauty remain easy to hear. ---Todd M. McComb, medieval.org

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 	Missa de S Anthonii de Padua 	(54:27)
1 	Introit In Medio Ecclesiae 	5:49
2 	Kyrie 	2:28
3 	Gloria 	8:06
4 	Gradual Os Iusti Meditabitur Sapientiam 	6:41
5 	Alleluia Anthoni Compar Inclite 	6:23
6 	Credo 	8:53
7 	Offertory Veritas mea 	3:35
8 	Sanctus 	6:13
9 	Agnus Dei 	3:28
10 	Communion Domine, Quinque Talenta 	2:41

11 	Motet 'O Proles Hispaniæ / O Sidus Hispaniæ' 	4:28

The Binchois Consort:
Tenor Vocals [Tenor I] – Edwin Simpson, Matthew Vine
Tenor Vocals [Tenor II] – Andrew Carwood, Chris Watson
Vocals [Discantus] – Fergus McLusky, Mark Chambers
Conductor – Andrew Kirkman 

It is not known why Guillaume Dufay devoted so much of his creative endeavour to his 'patron saint', Anthony of Padua, but the resulting Mass (consisting of the 'Ordinary' movements along with five further motets with texts in praise of Anthony) remains one of the most extraordinary works of polyphony of the period. Dufay's will ordained the Mass to be performed in supplication for his soul each year, a practice apparently continued until the great cathedral at Cambrai was demolished in 1796.

This is a highly virtuosic piece: the rhythmic complexities in its Gloria and Credo, in particular, guaranteed it the attention of theorists for decades after its composition. The Mass is joined on this recording by the motet O proles Hispaniae which was also composed with St Anthony in mind and whose text is beneath the image of the Saint in the Flemish miniature on the disc's front cover. ---hyperion-records.co.uk

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1 	Salve Flos Tuscae Gentis 	7:44
2 	Apostolo Glorioso, Da Dio Electo 	3:25
3 	Imperatrix Angelorum 	4:48
4 	Alma Redemptoris Mater (I) 	4:16
5 	Gaude Vigo, Mater Christi 	4:39
6 	Ecclesiae Militantis 	5:42
7 	Anima Mea Liquiefacta Est 	5:52
8 	Vasilissa, Ergo Gaude 	3:11
9 	Salve Regina 	8:48
10 	Inclita Stella Maris 	4:25
11 	Alma Redemptoris Mater (II) 	4:26
12 	Balsamus Et Munda Cera 	4:24
13 	Juvenis Qui Puellam 	5:51
14 	Flos Florum 	3:56
15 	Nuper Rosarum Flores 	6:58

Cantica Symphonia (Ensemble)

This literally mind-boggling disc may be the first classical release to come packaged with its own 10-page essay by an Italian professor of mathematics. Although he certainly didn't think about it that way, Guillaume Dufay was a composer situated between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance; his songs breathed a new lyrical and text-expressive spirit, and his larger works linked the numerically oriented medieval isorhythm technique with the Renaissance cantus firmus technique of organizing a mass. His works seem to contain subtle, often hidden manipulations of mathematical proportions -- not surprising in itself, since proportion played an important part in musical, mathematical, and philosophical thinking of the day, and the entire notational system Dufay worked with was suffused with porportional possibilities. This album by the Italian vocal-instrumental group Cantica Symphonia takes off from the proportional aspect of large Dufay works like the motet Nuper rosarum flores, long thought to have been based on the proportions of the great cathedral of Florence but recently discovered to have probably been modeled on another building. The album was actually sponsored by the mathematics department of the University of Turin, and an essay by professor Guido Magnano explores the mathematical bases of the musical system Dufay knew. For the average listener the musical manifestations of these principles are going to be hard to hear sitting in front of your stereo; the chief interpretive decision made by Cantica Symphonia is to strive for a transparent texture, judiciously using a small instrumental ensemble to bring out structural details. Save for the fact that the voice parts are sung solo, it's a Renaissance performance in the classic "pure" mold. For the numerologically inclined or for the serious student of the Renaissance era, the disc is an interdisciplinary goldmine. Recorded in an Italian church, the disc matches its engineering to its aims, and the packaging by the Spanish label Glossa is uncommonly attractive. ---James Manheim, AllMusic Review

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1. Work(s): Introit; Venite benedicti
2. Missa Se la face ay pale, for 4 voices: Kyrie
3. Missa Se la face ay pale, for 4 voices: Gloria
4. Work(s): Gradual; Gloriosus Deus
5. Work(s): Alleluia; Iudicabunt sancti
6. Missa Se la face ay pale, for 4 voices: Credo
7. Work(s): Offertory; Mirabilis Deus
8. Missa Se la face ay pale, for 4 voices: Sanctus
9. Missa Se la face ay pale, for 4 voices: Agnus Dei
10. Work(s): Communion; Gaudete iusti
11. O tres piteulx, cantilena motet for 4 voices ('Lamentatio sanctae matris ecclesiae Constantinopolitanae')
12. Se la face ay pale, ballade for 4 voices (doubtful): Ballade
13. Magnanime gentis, isorhythmic motet for 3 voices

The Binchois Consort 
Andrew Kirkman (conductor)

Recording details: February 2008
Chapel of All Souls College, Oxford, United Kingdom

The Binchois Consort’s first recordings of Dufay for Hyperion achieved iconic status, winning a Gramophone award along the way. Despite the proliferation of early music groups recording Dufay in their wake, the Binchois remain the ultimate musical authority on this great composer.

Their latest recording contains what many consider to be Dufay’s masterpiece. His Missa Se la face ay pale is one of the best known, and perhaps most revered, of all polyphonic masses. Indeed, it is a work of such renown that it enjoys a special kind of status among Renaissance mass cycles. Along with a handful of other such works, it has become a touchstone for the idea and structural design of the unified cantus firmus mass, a classic exemplification of the musical style and achievement of an era. The work is presented here, however, not as a five-movement sequence but in a more differentiated and perhaps more appropriate dramatic fashion, interspersed with music in a contrasting style for the Proper of the Mass (also five movements: Introit, Gradual, Alleluia, Offertory, Communion). The programme is completed by two motets and the ballade on which the Mass is based.

This recording evokes in sound something of the cultural achievement and brilliance of the Court of Savoy at its first peak of maturity, during the middle decades of the fifteenth century. The musical works performed here complement and enrich the historical picture of the late-medieval and Renaissance duchy that can be gleaned from the archives, libraries and museums. Live sound vividly extends and deepens the scope of such a picture, just as does an appreciation of the geographical and architectural settings which are the physical stage for such cultural developments. ---hyperion-records.co.uk

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