EBU: Music for Holy Week

[doversoul1]

Ian Skelly presents the European Broadcasting Union's annual day of music to mark Holy Week, with live and pre-recorded concerts from Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, London, Prague, Rome and Wexford. In this first part of the broadcast music by Vivaldi complements Pergolesi's Stabat Mater in a concert in the Gardens of the Vatican, and the BBC Singers sing music appropriate to Holy Week by William Byrd and Thomas Tallis.

13.00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07454cc

16.00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07454cf

22.30

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07454g7

Do check the playlists. It looks good.

[jean]

Yes! I wasn't aware these were coming up.

Fascinating to have a segment from Ireland, which rarely features in these EBU marathons!

[DracoM]

The Ars Nova / Hillier segment looks particularly worth hanging around for.

Thx for heads up, doversoul - as ever.

[BBMmk2]

With a bit of luck, I should be able to hear this! Thank you DS! :)

[ardcarp]

All on SUNDAY 20th March, BTW.

[doversoul1]

All on SUNDAY 20th March, BTW.

Thank you‼ and that’s today. 1.00 pm

[doversoul1]

Refreshingly () un-HIPP (sounding to me) Matthew Passion. I do liked the way in which the choir / mob roars ‘Barabbas!’. No OVPP can have the same effect.

I very much enjoyed the first part of the second part (haven’t managed to hear the rest).

[Old Grumpy]

I thought the BBCS men gave a very good rendition of the Tallis and Byrd.

OG

[Nick Armstrong]

Refreshingly () un-HIPP (sounding to me) Matthew Passion.

Off thread but relevant to your comment, dovers: I was interested in this post today by HIPP keyboard maestro Mahan Esfahani

[ardcarp]

Back on thread again...well, sort of. A complete Matthew Passion from the Netherlands (not quite 'live' and with quite a few English bods involved.......James Gilchrist sounding wonderful), part 1 of the St John on Record Review and a complete St John courtesy of my CD player and NCO. I feel quite Holy now...for an agnostic.

[Keraulophone]

St Matthew Passion from the Netherlands ..James Gilchrist sounding wonderful, part 1 of the St John on Record Review and a complete St John courtesy of my CD player and NCO. I feel quite Holy now...for an agnostic.

Agreed (we had the SJP in the cathedral with sermon between the parts), but what ruined this SMP for me was the wailing countertenor of (I assume) David Daniels, sounding somewhat like a castrato. Other countertenors aren't so destructive of the special aura of this work, eg M Chance, A Scholl, R Blaze and many others less well known but who also do a fine job. Alternatively, I'd prefer Dame Janet any day.

[doversoul1]

Agreed (we had the SJP in the cathedral with sermon between the parts), but what ruined this SMP for me was the wailing countertenor of (I assume) David Daniels, sounding somewhat like a castrato. Other countertenors aren't so destructive of the special aura of this work, eg M Chance, A Scholl, R Blaze and many others less well known but who also do a fine job. Alternatively, I'd prefer Dame Janet any day.

I was a bit shocked to hear that voice when I was expecting a very much mellowed David Daniels’s voice, and was much relieved to hear that it was in fact someone else when Ian Skelly read out the cast. And it is in here too.

http://www.concertgebouworkest.nl/en/Concerts/Program/Season-2015-2016/St-Matthew-Passion/

As you say, there are plenty of less well known but fine countertenors about these days. I think it was a pity that they couldn’t be more selective.

[ardcarp]

...obviously a change at short notice. Mind you, this was no small Baroque band; maybe it needed a bit of wellie to be heard?

[Keraulophone]

I ... was much relieved to hear that it was in fact someone else

Ah, that may explain what we had to suffer... but there are two countertenors listed, L Zazzo and J Laing (strangely billed 'alto' - he's a c-t). Which was the wailing hoodlum in this most sublime music?

[doversoul1]

Ah, that may explain what we had to suffer... but there are two countertenors listed, L Zazzo and J Laing (strangely billed 'alto' - he's a c-t). Which was the wailing hoodlum in this most sublime music?

This is my completely unfounded and prejudiced thought but I am almost sure that it ( the wailing hoodlum) was J Laing. Lawrence Zazzo is usually in perfect control of his voice.

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Harmonia%2BMundi/HMU807590

As for billed as alto, some countertenors or concert promoters (the latter is my guess) prefer the term alto to countertenor because (my guess, again) the listeners will focus on the voice rather than the singer being a man sounding like a woman (well, they don’t but that’s the perception).