Musica Dei Donum

08/09/2024

CD reviews:

G Bononcini: "How are the mighty fallen"
Soloists, Choir of Queen's College Oxford, Academy of Ancient Music/Owen Rees

Dandrieu:
- Premier livre de Pièces d'Orgue
Pieter-Jan Belder, organ
- "Trois Livres de Pièces de Clavecin"
Pieter-Jan Belder, harpsichord

Guido: Sonates à violon seul avec accompagnement de basse et de clavecin
Ensemble Hortensia Virtuosa

Handel: "Handel's Tea Time"
Dorothee Mields, Die Freitagsakademie

see:

early music, cd reviews, concert reviews, news, opinions, links

05/09/2024

Donderdag 5 september in Missa Etcetera (Concertzender, 22.00-23.00 uur) muziek uit Frankrijk: niet gecomponeerd in Parijs of Versailles, maar in Toulouse. De componisten zijn daarom weinig bekend: Joseph Valette de Montigny en Bernard-Aymable Dupuy. Van eerstgenoemde klinkt een 'grand motet', van de tweede een mis.

In dit programma klinkt muziek uit Frankrijk, maar nu eens niet muziek die gecomponeerd is in Parijs of Versailles, maar in Toulouse.

04/09/2024

Review Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht / Festival Early Music Utrecht 2024

04/09/2024

Aan mijn dagboek van het Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht heb ik nog een nabeschouwing toegevoegd.

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02/09/2024

Vanmorgen heb ik mijn dagboek van het Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht afgerond: https://hortusmusicus.wordpress.com. Later deze week hopelijk een recensie van het gehele festival op mijn site.

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02/09/2024

My last concert at this year's Festival Early Music Utrecht was very different from the previous one. After the serenity of the most sacred music one can imagine - an Office of the Dead and Requiem - I went to the Lutheran Church for a recital with very secular songs. Raquel Andueza had put together a programme of 'todos humanos', a typical Spanish genre, that one could compare with the Italian 17th-century secular monody. The difference is that these songs were often intended as part of music for the stage. The composers of such music were often also responsible for the songs, such as Juan Hidalgo and Sebastián Durón. They were represented in the programme performed on the first Saturday by Yetzabel Arías and the Ricercar Consort. The songs in this concert were nearly all anonymous. This repertoire is not that well-known, but the older members of the audience may have recognized 'Vuestros ojos', which Nigel Rogers included in one of his recordings. Raquel Andueza seems to have changed her way of singing some time ago; she produces a sound that is different from that on early recordings that I have in my collection. Some time ago I heard a recording of one of her concerts, and I found it not easy to appreciate her singing. That was different this time: I was pleased by the way she performed these songs, and the way she presented them, paying tribute to the theatrical traits without ever exaggerating. The performance as a whole had the intimacy of a living room. When I saw in the programme that a violinist would take part, I wondered what his role may be. As I expected he played some instrumental pieces, but to my surprise he also participated in a number of songs. He played embellished versions of a song between two stanzas, and in the last he sometimes played colla voce. I wonder whether this practice is documented from the time these songs were written. Anyway, Pablo Prieto played very well, both in the songs and the instrumental items, and I should not forget to mention Jesús Fernández Baena for his fine accompaniments on his theorbo. This concert was a fine way to conclude the day and my visit at the festival.

THE END

02/09/2024

Cristóbal de Morales, who can be considered the first important representative of the Spanish Golden Age, has been given much attention at the Festival Early Music Utrecht. The ensemble Cantica Symphonia performed a collection of motets, and Paul McCreesh, with his Gabrieli Consort & Players, his Missa Mille regretz. It was fitting that the last concert devoted to him concerned one of his great works, the Officium defunctorum and Missa pro defunctis. It was written between 1535 and 1545 when he was in Rome, where it was published. It was widely known in Europe and in the New World. I had no doubt that it would receive an excellent performance by Vox Luminis, another regular at the festival. However, I had my doubts about the venue: the large hall of TivoliVredenburg seemed to me hardly appropriate for this kind of music. I was wrong, and that was due to Vox Luminis. They entered the stage in almost complete darkness; the singers posted themselves in a circle, under dimmed lights to allow them to read their parts. First they sang the chants of the Officium, taking time between them. After the Officium they took seats at the back of the platform; after several minutes of complete silence they returned to sing the Requiem. In such situations audiences often get restless, start to make noises, cough, blow their noses, even talk. Nothing of that happened: the solemnity of the performance was transferred to the audience and one could have heard a pin drop. The music and the way Vox Luminis performed it were mesmerizing. They always seem to be able to get to the heart of the music they are performing. It is nothing short of a miracle. Obviously, a festival is not a competition. However, earlier I wondered what would be *the* highlight of this year's festival and I mentioned the performance of Lamentations from Cuzco by Música Temprana as my most likely candidate. The performance by Vox Luminis is another one. So these two ensembles come out on top ex aequo.

02/09/2024

As I have mentioned before, the Festival Early Music Utrecht offers the opportunity to become acquainted with young performers and ensembles. One of the latter is Opera Omnia, directed by Isaac Pulet. The programme did not mention when it was founded, but I had never heard of it. Like various other concerts, it focused on music from the New World. The programme was entitled "Vaya de fiesta: Baroque from Spanish America". The pieces selected were all from the 17th century, mostly written by composers born there (among the exceptions was Sebastián Durón). There were some odd things here. The programme notes mentioned the name of Diego José de Salazar as one of the Spanish composers in the programme. In fact, the piece with the name Salazar was by Antonio, born in Pueblo. Maybe Diego José was the composer of the first item in the programme, which I did not find in the list of pieces. At least, I could not identify the text the ensemble was singing. But the texts were very hard to understand anyway. In almost each item percussion was used, and that was so loud that the singing was almost drowned out, an effect that was enlarged by the acoustic of the Jacobikerk, which was not the ideal venue. Because of that it was not easy to keep track with the course of the programme. Although I noticed that the ensemble consists of fine singers and players, I was rather unhappy with what I heard here. They were extremely busy: on Saturday evening they performed a completely different programme at the Laus Polyphoniae festival in Antwerp. The Belgian channel Klara covered it, and as I recorded it I hope to listen to it, which may give a better impression of what Opera Omnia is about.

02/09/2024

The earliest music at the Festival Early Music Utrecht was performed by Hana Blažíková and Barbora Kabátková, who had made a selection from the Cantigas de Santa Maria, which were written at the court of Alfonso el Sabio. According to a persistent legend, he was the composer of these songs, but that is highly unlikely, although he may have contributed to the collection in one way or another. Little is known about the way these songs have to be performed, and this explains the very different performances and recordings. In this concert at the Pieterskerk, the two singers either sang together or individually, accompanying themselves at the harp or without any accompaniment. In some songs Margit Übellacker played the dulce melos and Martin Novák percussion. Some songs were performed instrumentally. The result was very different from performances with a battery of instruments, which for a long time were the standard. In this line-up the text takes a central place, and that is what these songs are about: the audience should be impressed by the miracles of the Virgin Mary they describe. The two singers had made an attractive selection, in which the most famous song, Rosa das rosas, could not be omitted. These ladies have such beautiful voices that it is not hard to appreciate their performances, whatever they are doing with them. But they are sincere interpreters, who don't aim to put themselves into the centre. The Cantigas are not meant as entertainment; it is serious stuff, and that came off perfectly. This was one of the most compelling performances of the Cantigas de Santa Maria that I can remember to have heard.

31/08/2024

Back from the evening concert at the Festival Early Music Utrecht. What a moving performance of Morales's Officium Defunctorum & Requiem by Vox Luminis. How they always get to the heart of the music they perform is just a miracle.

31/08/2024

The evening concert at the Festival Early Music Utrecht was given by the ensemble L'Arpeggiata, directed by Christina Pluhar. The programme was called 'The Golden Tower', referring to the 'Torre del Oro' at the banks of the river Guadalquivir, and considered the symbol of Seville. As in many concerts, this one aimed at connecting Spain and the New World. The programme consisted of compositions by Spanish composers and pieces from the New World, in particular traditionals. A number of pieces had been arranged by Pluhar, and there were also improvisations. I had hesitated to include this event in my list of concerts, as I have had bad experiences with L'Arpeggiata several times in the past. However, I decided to give it a chance. That was a bad decision. Every time one looks at the programme and thinks that Pluhar can't possibly ruin it. Wrong. She can ruin everything - it's a special gift. A look at the list of performers - which was not available when ordering tickets - is enough to get suspicious: one of the instruments is a double bass. What does such an instrument have to do with music from Spain and the New World of the 16th and 17th centuries? It was used as a plucked instrument: the player did not even have a bow with him. There were also several percussion instruments and a cornett; the latter is completely out of place in a programme in which traditional music takes a prominent place. The opening piece, Mudarra's Se me llaman, was promising, and nicely sung by Céline Scheen. In the second piece the ensemble went off the rails: we got an endless series of improvised variations on Guardame las vacas, which had little to do with Mudarra, who was mentioned in the programme as the composer. He would not have recognized it. This was an indication of what was to come. The whole concert of 90 minutes was little else than 90 minutes of self-exposure. Players got the chance to shine as soloists with improvisations and then to receive applause. In concerts of this ensemble the players come first, the music is reduced to a vehicle to make the players shine. And many members of the ensemble are showing off, probably thinking they are quite funny. It is unbearable; the concert was little more than a freak show and a demonstration of intolerable vanity. It was a waste of my time. Christina Pluhar and her ensemble should be banned for ever; populism has no place at a festival which claims to take music and its performance seriously.

31/08/2024

One of the Spanish ensembles I have been following quite closely is La Grande Chapelle, directed by Albert Recasens. On my site I have reviewed many of its recordings, which are released on its own label, and all of them are excellent. As far as I know, the ensemble has never before performed at the Festival Early Music Utrecht, and I was happy to see it being programmed today in the Cathedral. The programme focused on the oeuvre of Alonso Lobo (1555-1617), one of the last representatives of the Golden Era. Although he is certainly not overlooked, he is a little overshadowed by his more famous contemporary Victoria. That is a shame, and therefore this concert was of great importance. The main work was his Missa Beata Dei genitrix, based on a motet by Guerrero, which opened the programme. The ensemble consisted of twelve singers and organ. The mass is a magnificent work, and its monumental character came perfectly off through the participation of the full ensemble. In addition we heard six motets; in some of them the number of singers was reduced. The last motet, Versa est in luctum, was particularly moving. The setting of Ave Maria was also special: it is scored for eight voices, and here Recasens allocated four singers at the pulpit just beneath the organ, and above the platform on which the ensemble was standing during the concert. It lent the performance a beautiful depth. One of the hallmarks of this ensemble is the quality of the voices and the coherence and perfect balance within the ensemble. The legato was perfect and the lines were shaped beautifully, with an effective and convincing use of dynamics. Most people in the audience may not have heard this ensemble before, and its performances were received with great enthusiasm, and rightly so. It was the perfect way to shed light on a composer who deserves its place alongside the giants Guerrero and Victoria.

31/08/2024

The programme of this year's Festival Early Music Utrecht does not include many concerts with instrumental music, apart from music for keyboard or plucked instruments. If music is played by an instrumental ensemble, it is mostly vocal or keyboard music. There is nothing wrong with that: instrumental performance of vocal music, for instance, was very common. An instrumental ensemble could consist of instruments of different families (the so-callecd 'broken consort') or of instruments of the same family, such as recorders, transverse flutes, violins or viols. A recorder consort of an unusual kind is The Royal Wind Music, which comprises nine to eleven players on recorders of different pitches, from sopranino to subcontrabass. The programme of the ensemble's concert at the Jacobikerk was constructed as a musical stroll through the Cathedral of Santa Maria. Apart from anonymous items, we heard pieces by various composers, among them Guerrero, Morales, Fuenllana, Escobar and Mudarra. Vocal music figured prominently. Among the sacred music were motets and mass sections, the secular part consisted of songs, and there were also some pieces for the vihuela. Only in some items the full ensemble took part; some vocal works were played with two instruments per part. In most pieces only a selection from the ensemble participated. One does not often hear so many different recorders, and therefore performances of this ensemble are something special. The concert was a pure delight: the music was well-chosen, with quite some variety, and brilliantly played, with great enthusiasm. It was clear to see and hear that the players enjoyed themselves. The Jacobikerk was the perfect venue: it has enough reverberation to make the recorders shine, but not too much, thanks to the large audience, which received the concert with much acclaim. As I have heard mainly vocal music in the festival, this concert brought some welcome variety.

31/08/2024

At the Festival Early Music Utrecht it is often striking how well the programme has been put together. Having returned from the concert by Bernard Foccroulle I went to the Lutherse Kerk for another recital in the keyboard series. Whereas Foccroulle closed with pieces by Arauxo, Diego Ares started with one of his works. He did play it on the virginal, which was not announced in the programme and was a little surprise, but a nice one, as I have not heard any of Arauxo's keyboard works on such an instrument. That said, it seems questionable whether that instrument was played in Spain. In New Grove I could not find any indication in that direction. Ares returned to Arauxo and the virginal halfway his programme and at the end. The piece in the middle was used to separate two groups of sonatas played at the harpsichord. The first group was from the pen of Domenico Scarlatti, the second taken from the oeuvre of Antonio Soler. With them we are in the 18th century, meaning that there was a distance of about a century between Arauxo and those two masters. It is a rather odd way to put together a programme. The reasons were not explained by Ares in the programme notes. Never mind, Arauxo's pieces were played very nicely. Ares' choice of sonatas by Scarlatti was not very adventurous: all sonatas were rather well-known. I would have liked some pieces that are not that often played and recorded. It is a bit easier in the case of Soler, as his sonatas are generally lesser-known and are almost completely overshadowed by his Fandango. In both cases the selection was a little one-sided as too many were in fast tempi. Ares played them brilliantly, but there could have been more breathing spaces. It was a bit like a whirlwind. However, I certainly enjoyed his performances, and overall it was a nice recital to listen to. I was especially happy that Ares ended with another piece by Arauxo, whose music is hard to beat.

31/08/2024

If a festival is devoted to Spanish early music, an organ recital can hardly be omitted. The problem then is which organ to use. The organ in the Cathedral largely dates from the 19th century, which makes it unsuitable for most earlier music. In previous editions of the Festival Early Music Utrecht organ recitals have been given at the organ of the Nicolaikerk, but that is a neo-baroque instrument, whose sound is hardly appropriate for early music. One of the better choices is the organ of the Tuindorpkerk, dating from the early 18th century. Problem is that it is a few kilometres north of the town centre which makes it less easy to include it in the festival programme. This year Bernard Foccroulle played a programme around Francisco Correa de Arauxo (1584-1664). Is it possible to play such music on a much later organ, and also a non-Spanish instrument? A few aspects need to be considered. The first is that a number of Arauxo's works - like pieces by other Spanish composers - require a split manual, as either the right or the left hand has to play solo and needs a different registration. This can be solved by using two manuals, as the organ of the Tuindorpkerk has, and the pedalboard. The second is that Spanish organs have registers which are absent on instruments in other parts of Europe. However, Foccroulle, in the liner-notes to his complete recording of Arauxo's organ oeuvre (Ricercar, 2021), points out that in the 16th and early 17th centuries, organ building in Spain was dominated by Flemish organ builders. The typical 'Spanish sound', the result of horizontal 'chamade' reeds and swell boxes containing echo cornets, is a later development. From that perspective, the organ he played in this concert is not that far away from what Arauxo may have known. The third aspect is the temperament; that is probably the biggest difference, as in Arauxo's time organs were tuned in meantone temperament, and the Utrecht organ is in Werckmeister III. Even so, Foccroulle managed to deliver convincing performances of the Arauxo's pieces, including five tientos, variations (glosas) on a chant for the feast of the Immaculate Conception, and the Tiento tercero de sexto tono sobre la Batalla de Morales, which closed the programme. As to underline the connection between Spain and Flanders, he also played pieces by the Flemish composer Peeter Cornet and two English masters, who emigrated to the Spanish Netherlands: John Bull and Peter Philips. Foccroulle's recital was an interesting portrait of Arauxo and his time, and he did justice to the selected organ works as well as to the instrument, which deserves its place in the festival, and should be used more often.

30/08/2024

Just back from the evening concert at the Festival Early Music Utrecht by l'Arpeggiata. A 90-minute freakshow. What a waste of time. More later.

30/08/2024

Mijn dagboek van het Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht staat hier:

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29/08/2024

The ensemble Stile Antico is a regular at the Festival Early Music Utrecht. Its discography shows that only once it has devoted a complete disc to Spanish music. In the Cathedral it performed a programme of music included in the Mexico Cathedral Library. Among the works in the library is a collection of masses by Alonso Lobo; one of them, the Missa O Rex gloriae, based on a motet for Ascension Day by Palestrina, was the core of the programme. We also heard some pieces in the Nahuatl language, by an anonymous composer, who was a pupil of Hernando Franco (who - likely wrongly - is named as the composer) and by Gaspar Fernandes. Stile Antico also sang two motets by Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla and Guerrero's famous motet Ave virgo sanctissima. The motets were performed with a reduced number of singers: Padilla's Circumdederunt me for five voices was performed with one voice per part, which allowed for an optimum transparency and a better intelligibility of the text. In the other motet by Padilla, Exultate justi, the joyful content came off perfectly by the lively singing of the ensemble. In the mass the full ensemble was involved, emphasizing its monumental character. Stile Antico was in superb form, as it always is at the festival, and the Cathedral was the perfect spot to make it and the music shine. For me it was the last event of the day, drowning my disappointment and irritation about the previous concert.

29/08/2024

At the Festival Early Music Utrecht one often has the chance to become acquainted with young performers and new ensembles. Last year I heard Cantoría for the first time, this year the ensemble Comet Musicke was a new name to me. In the Pieterskerk it offered a musical biography of Francisco Guerrero. Music by him and contemporaries was performed by voices and instruments, with biographical details read by members of the ensemble. In general I am not in favour of musicians or others talking during concerts. Often they are hard to understand, because they don't speak very clearly or due to the acoustic. However, this could have been interesting. There was little wrong with the singing and playing; this ensemble has undoubtedly good qualities. However, I was not happy with the way the music was performed. The ensemble seriously suffered from what I use to call 'percussionitis': in many pieces percussion was used, where there is no need for it or it is simply out of place. The latter goes for the sacred works. Using percussion in the Kyrie of a mass is ridiculous, and the title of Guerrero's Missa de la Batalla escoutez is no justification for it. It was used in songs from cancioneros; in a previous message about the festival I mentioned that the ensemble Da Tempera Velha approaches this repertoire as chamber music, which undoubtedly is in accordance with its meaning. From that perspective the use of winds in a villanesca by Guerrero is simply wrong. The best parts came at the end: Alonso Lobo's motet Vivo ego, dicit Dominus and two of his songs were performed very nicely. However, it could not compensate for the fact that most pieces in the programme were spoiled by unconvincing decisions with regard to performance practice.

29/08/2024

Thursday at the Festival Early Music was announced as America day, but I did not find much information about it. I had liked to know what the reason was, as it seems in no way connected to the theme of the festival. On closer consideration, the connection may be that in the concerts devoted to it music from immigrants in North America was performed. The Camerata Trajectina presented a programme under the title of 'New Amsterdam', with music which was part of the luggage of Dutch immigrants in the New World. I have not attended that concert, but heard Cathryn Cok, who played a programme of keyboard music which can be found in sources from the world of the Moravian brothers, who held music in high esteem. We heard several pieces by Christian Friedrich Gregor, who was a Moravian brother himself, but never left Germany. His arrangements of hymns found their way to the New World where they were given English titles. Kathryn Cok played some at a chamber organ, followed by corresponding pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach. An example was 'Father in heaven', followed by Bach's 'Vater unser im Himmelreich' (BWV 683). In addition we heard pieces by Hasse, Johann Ernst Bach, William Boyce, Handel and the hardly-known Antonin Kimmel, played on the harpsichord. This recital was a captivating musical portrait of the musical world of the Moravian brothers. The sources which include this repertoire seem well worth being explored. Kathryn Cok is an outstanding performer, who I have seldom heard at the festival. This was a most pleasant experience. She closed with a magnificent performance of Handel's Suite No. 7 in g minor, ending with a brilliant passacaille.

29/08/2024

From the 15th and the early 16th centuries a few songbooks have been preserved, which have gained almost cult status, even before the revival of early music had established itself. In the early days of historical performance practice the songs from these books were assumed to be something typically Spanish. At the Festival Early Music Utrecht the ensemble Da Tempera Velha, directed by Ariel Abramovich, aimed at revising that view, emphasizing that these songs are part of a tradition which developed across Europe, by comparing them with what was written elsewhere. That was demonstrated in a concert in Hertz, the chamber music hall of TivoliVredenburg. The programme started with a song from the Cancionero de Palacio, 'Nunca fue pena mayor' by the Flemish composer Juan (Johannes) de Urrede, which Pierre de La Rue took as the basis for one of his masses. From another Cancionero we heard Tandernaken; pieces with this title are mostly instrumental, but here we heard a vocal version by Alexander Agricola. One piece in the programme may have been familiar to older members of the audience: in the early days of the revival of early music Giacomo Fogliano's 'L'amor dona ch'io te porto' was often performed, mostly in what was thought to be *the* Spanish style. How different was the performance by Da Tempera Velha: a few voices and vihuela. Last year at the Festival, Música Temprana performed this kind of repertoire in the same intimate style, arguing that such songs were intended for performance at the court. This means that a battery of instruments is not required. Most pieces were secular, but there were also a few sacred items, taken from the same kind of sources, one again attesting to the fact that there was no watershed between the secular and the sacred at the time. The three singers - Florencia Menconi (soprano), Jonatan Alvarado (tenor) and Breno Quinderé (bass) - delivered wonderfully subtle performances, in which they perfectly caught the spirit of these songs; Abramovich added sensitive accompaniments. One can only hope that other ensembles and performers listen and draw conclusions. Arrangements and orchestrations of the songs from the cancioneros have nothing to do with historical performance practice. Kudos to Da Tempera Velha for convincingly demonstrating how they are to be performed.

29/08/2024

Every year one wonders what event may be *the* highlight of the Festival Early Music Utrecht. In 2021, for instance, it was the performance of Cavalieri's Rappresentatione di Anima e di Corpo by Vox Luminis. We are halfway the festival, and I am pretty sure that the concert by Música Temprana in the Cathedral this evening will be this year's highlight. That is firstly due to the repertoire. Adrián Rodríguez Van der Spoel once again transported the audience to the New World, this time Cuzco in Peru. It was once the capital of an immense Inca empire which was conquered by Spanish colonialism. Cuzco became the centre of the spread of Christianity. The Cuzco seminary owns a colonial music archive, whose index shows a remarkably large number of settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah. Rodríguez Van der Spoel thinks it may well have something to do with the content of these Lamentations: "Jerusalem was plundered by the Babylonians, just as Cuzco was plundered by the Spanish". These texts have an expressive depth that has made them part of the repertoire for Passiontide, especially the last three days of Holy Week, the Triduum Sacrum. Many settings are known from the renaissance and baroque periods. In this concert we heard pieces from the 18th century performed in Cuzco. Most of the composers are anonymous, but they must have been true masters. Not often I have heard such expressive settings, with such emotional intensity. That was also due to the way these Lamentations were performed, which emphasized the strong feelings in the text. Another striking piece, also anonymous, was a setting of the Stabat mater. written in the indigenous language, from the Jesuit mission posts of Chiquitos in present-day Bolivia. It is long and rather simple, as it homophonic and written in the style of plainchant. Even so, it is a very moving piece, and again, that was also thanks to the way it was performed, in a rather slow tempo - entirely appropriate - and in a solemn manner. Not all settings of the Lamentations were anonymous: the second item was a setting in a rather curious scoring for two sopranos (magnificent: Lina López and Olalla Alemán) and two dulcians (excellent: François de Rudder and Wouter Verschuren) by Juan de Araujo. The concert ended with a setting for seven voices by Tomás Torrejón y Velasco, who from 1676 until his death in 1728 was maestro de capilla of Lima Cathedral. It was a fine close to an event which I will remember for a long time.

29/08/2024

The Festival Early Music Utrecht has Seville as its theme, and as in the late 16th century it became the gateway to the New World, music from that part of the world is given much attention. Today in the Geertekerk, we were transported to another part of the world outside Europe: Manila in the Philippines. Here in 1581 Domingo de Salazar became the first bishop, and a new church was built, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. This inspired the Ca****la Pratensis to perform a mass for this feast, whose core was the Missa Sancta et immaculata by Francisco Guerrero. It is not known exactly what music was performed in Manila, but the bishop wrote in a letter to Philip II that it was not different from what was performed in Spain. As always, the Ca****la Pratensis sang from a choirbook, the singers standing close to each other around it. This time they were accompanied by the Ensemble La Danserye, playing loud wind instruments and recorders; the players were standing behind the singers and played from the same choirbook. It is known that in Manila the choir of boys and men was accompanied by winds, among them recorders and shawms. The plainchant was selected in accordance with the feast of the Immaculate Conception; in some cases polyphony was added. The performance was simply magnificent, worthy of the celebration of a major feast. That was thanks to the excellent singing and playing, and the fact that the mass was performed in a liturgical setting. The insertion of plainchant really helps to understand the spiritual meaning of a mass setting and as a result it has more impact than a 'concert performance'. The event closed with another fine work by Guerrero, his Ave Maria for eight voices.