Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #55684 in Music
• Released on: 2004-02-16
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .24 pounds
• Running time: 118 minutes

Customer Reviews

Magnificent music, beautifully sung.
I often buy CDs, play them and think - "Oh, this is lovely." Occasionally I find a recording which is just breathtaking on first hearing, and this double CD is one of those. It is simply mesmerising. Josquin's music is among the most beautiful ever composed, and here there is a selection of some of his finest work. There are deeply moving motets like "De profundis clamavi", the lament on the death of Ockeghem, some lighter and delightful chansons, a great mass setting and Josquin's overwhelmingly lovely setting of the 51st psalm "Miserere mei Deus" - one of the glories of the Renaissance, in my view. The set also includes one of my favourite pieces ever, the setting of "Lugebat David Absalon", now thought to be by Nicholas Gombert.

The Hilliard Ensemble do this great music proud. That haunting Hilliard sound is there, beautifully capturing the spirit of the music, and the standard of musicianship is superb. There are several outstanding Josquin recordings available - by the Tallis Scholars, for example - and these discs stand with the best of them. They are simply magnificent.

I know that prices vary from time to time, but as I write this the cost of this double CD is just under six pounds. Not only first-rate music, but an incredible bargain, too. Recommended in the highest possible terms.