What is the connection between a sixteenth-century mass
setting and an instrumental work that was to continue for well over 150 years?
The answer is the words ‘in nomine’.
In the early sixteenth-century, John Taverner composed a
mass setting based on the antiphon ‘Gloria tibi trinitas’. In the Benedictus
section of the mass, Taverner scores the words ‘in nomine Domini’ for a reduced
number of singers (four parts). This portion of the work became popular and
instrumental arrangements emerged soon after. However these were more than just
mere arrangements; the melody was used in numerous different ways and composers
wrote free, imitative counterpoint around the melody. This is known as ‘cantus
firmus’, literally ‘fixed song’. Music in England seemed to evolve in parallel
with the latest trends in the rest of Europe. Instrumental groups made up of
viols flourished in England whilst in Italy the violin had been invented and
string writing was rapidly changing to a more virtuosic style. There was also a
shift away from contrapuntal harmony writing towards functional harmony; florid
counterpoint had lost its dominance and a more homophonic style had taken its place.
By the early seventeenth–century composers had started a new chromatic style, and
text was expressed in a very direct and sometimes radical way.
Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613) is perhaps one of the best known
composers from this period. His music places the expression of the text at the
forefront, making the music serve the text and not the other way round. Even to
21st century ears his music can sound strange - Gesualdo connects
distant harmonies with ‘pivot’ notes, sometimes resulting in highly chromatic
passages. This highly expressive style previously associated with
madrigals is also present in his sacred works. His music for holy week is full
of beautifully expressive passages, reflecting the sombre nature of the text.
Over the past 40 years, the Tallis Scholars have produced a
formidable number of high quality recordings, and on the 14th August
they will be celebrating this remarkable anniversary at the BBC Proms, with
music by Taverner and Gesualdo.
