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1 LP -
1C 063-30 119 - (p) 1974
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1 CD - 8
26488 2 - (c) 2000 |
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THE KING'S
MUSICK - Aus der Zeit Henry VIII |
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1. Pastime with
good company (Henry VIII,
1491-1547) - Contratenor, Tenor,
Harfe, Viola da gamba |
1' 52" |
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2. I loved
unloved (Anonym) - Contratenor,
Tenor, 3 Blockflöten, Viola da
gamba |
4' 15" |
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3. Fors solemant
(Antoine de Fevin, 1474?-1512) - 3
Blockflöten |
2' 29" |
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4. Puzzle canon
III (John Dunstable, ?-1453) -
2 Viole da gamba, Blockflöte |
1' 21" |
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5. Farewall my
joy (Robert Cooper, 15.-16.
Jhdt.) - Tenor, 2 Viole da gamba |
2' 29" |
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6. En vray
amoure (Henry VIII, 1491-1547)
- 4 Blockflöten, Harfe |
1' 03" |
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7. Ah Robin,
gentle Robin (William Cornish,
?-1523) - Contratenor, Tenor,
Viola da gamba |
2' 03" |
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8. Taundernaken
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - 3
Pommer, Schlagzeug |
2' 26" |
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9. Consort X
(Anonym) - Rebec, Laute,
Schlagzeug |
1' 18" |
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10. Consort IX
(Anonym) - Rebec, Laute,
Schlagzeug |
1' 07" |
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11. Consort XII
(Anonym) - Rebec, Laute,
Schlagzeug |
0' 59" |
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12. Ough warder
mount (Anonym) - Tenor,
Laute |
2' 41" |
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13. Consort II
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - Harfe |
0' 55" |
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14. De tous bien
plane (Hayne van Chiyeghem, 15
Jhdt.) - Contratenor, Laute, 2
Viole da gamba |
3' 29" |
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15. Gentil
prince de renom (Henry VIII,
1491-1547) - Contratenor, Tenor,
2 Pommer, Schalmei |
1' 41" |
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16. The Duke of
Somersettes Dompe (Anonym) - Laute |
2' 32" |
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17. Warder mount
(Anonym) - Laute |
1' 21" |
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18. Pastyme
(Anonym) - Laute |
0' 56" |
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19. Helas madam
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - Contratenor,
Tenor, Harfe, Viola da gamba, 3
Shawn, Schlagzeug |
2' 42" |
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20. Consort VIII
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - Harfe |
1' 29" |
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21. Why shall
not I (Anonym) - Viola da
gamba, Laute |
0' 57" |
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22. Consort XIX
(Anonym) - Viola da gamba, Laute |
2' 47" |
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23. Madame
d'amours (Anonym) - Contratenor,
Tenor, 2 Viole da gamba |
3' 07" |
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24. Pavin of
Albert - Galliard (Anonym) - 4
Blockflöten, Harfe |
2' 30" |
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25. Consort XIII
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - Viola
da gamba, Laute |
2' 00" |
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26. If love now
reigned (Henry VIII,
1491-1547) - Blockflöte, Laute |
1' 47" |
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27. Consort XXI
(Anonym) - Blockflöte, Laute,
Viola da gamba |
1' 50" |
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28. I have
bene a foster (Robert Cooper,
15.-16. Jhdt.) - Tenor, 2 Krummhörner |
2' 36" |
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29. Consort XIX
(Henry VIII, 1491-1547) - Rebec,
Laute |
1' 15" |
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30. Blow thi
horn (William Cornish, ?-1523) - Contratenor,
Tenor, 3 Krummhörner,
Schlagzeug |
1' 41" |
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RICERCARE-ENSEMBLE
FÜR ALTE MUSIK, ZÜRICH |
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James Bowman, Contratenor (1, 2,
7, 14, 15, 19, 23 und 30) |
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Nigel Rogers, Tenor (1, 2, 5, 7,
12, 15, 19, 23, 28 und 30) |
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Michel Piguet, Blockflöte,
Sopranpommer, Krummhorn, Shawn (2,
3, 4, 6, 8, 19, 24, 26, 27, 28,
und 30) |
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Richard Erig, Blockflöte,
Altpommer, Krummhorn, Shawn (2, 3,
4, 6, 8, 19, 24, 28 und 30) |
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Nils Ferber, Blockflöte,
Tenorpommer, Krummhorn, Shawn (2,
3, 6, 15, 19, 24 und 30) |
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Gabriel Garrido, Blockflöte,
Schlagzeug (6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 19,
24 und 30) |
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Christopher Schmidt, Rebec,
Viola da gamba (4, 5, 9, 10, 11,
14, 23 und 29) |
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Jordi Savall, Viola da gamba (1,
2, 4, 5, 7, 14, 19, 21, 22, 23, 25
und 27) |
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Françoise Stein, Kleine Harfe
(1, 6, 13, 19, 20 und 24) |
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Anthony Bailes, Laute (9, 10,
11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22,
25, 26, 27 und 29) |
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Luogo
e data di registrazione |
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Kirche
Neumünster, Zürich (Svizzera) -
marzo 1974 |
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Registrazione: live /
studio |
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studio |
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Producer / Engineer |
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Gerd
Berg / Johann-Nikolaus Matthes
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Prima Edizione LP |
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EMI
Electrola "Reflexe" - 1C 063-30
119 - (1 lp) - durata 60' 14" -
(p) 1974 - Analogico |
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Prima Edizione CD |
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EMI
"Classics" - 8 26488 2 - (1 cd) -
durata 60' 14" - (c) 2000 - ADD |
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Note |
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The King and
His Court
Henry VIII was born in
Greenwich in 1491 and came to
the throne in 1509. He was a
clever, gay and handsome
youth, well skilled in all
manner of athletic games,
though in later life he became
coarse, fat and ungainly. He
knew Latin, French and some
Italian, was a talented
student of mathematics and
showed great interest in
geometry and astronomy. As an
athlete he excelled; he was
one ot the finest archers in
the land, wrestled, jousted
(in 1510 took part incognito
in the jousts at Richmond as
the Oueen’s champion), hunted
and enjoyed hawking.
His greatest love, however,
was music. An enthusiastic and
gifted amateur, music
accompanied him wherever he
went, on progress or campaign.
He played the lute well, could
manage organ and virginals,
and possessed a strong sure
voice. His favourite
instrument, however, seems to
have been the recorder; an
inventory of 1547 boasts
seventy nine of them, and we
are told that whilst in the
course of a progress in 1511,
Henry amused himself “in
shooting, singing, dancing,
wrestling... playing at the
recorders, flute and
virginals...". He also
composed and is credited with
having written ballads, songs,
instrumental pieces and
masses. Unfortunately none of
his masses have survived,
although some songs and
instrumental pieces still
exist. His court was concerned
with feasting and merry
making, revels, disguisings
pageants and tilts. All this
was balanced by outdoor
activities such as hawking,
riding and hunting. Henry’s
courtiers were also his
companions; he sang with Sir
Peter Carew, discussed the
universe with Thomas More, and
rode and hunted with Lord
Henry Stafford and Edward
Neville. One account tells of
how Henry and his friends
burst into the Queen`s chamber
at Westminster one morning
dressed as Robin Hood's men to
dance with the surprised
ladies (no doubt, also to sing
one ofthe many “foster” songs)
and on other occasions dressed
as Turks, or wearing brightly
coloured costumes. Hardly a
month went by without some
celebration or festivity.
Thousands of pounds were spent
clothing and entertainments
for the king and his court.
Musicians were imported
wholesale from abroad, and
visiting ambassadors lavishly
entertained. Later in his
reign the pageants would take
on political meanings and
Henry was to grow into a
noisy, extroverted overweight
man with an obsession for fine
clothes, jewelled rings, and
an insatiable appetite for
gambling and eating. Henry’s
character changed much
throughout his reign and as a
man feared and revered by his
chancellors he died on the
31st of Januar 1547.
The King’s Musicians
At the beginning of the
sixteenth century the English
court reflected a culture
which had been in existence in
France one hundred years
earlier. The "courts of love",
chivalry, courtly
"pastimes"... these were
essentials in the court when
Henry VII ruled.
The same atmosphere pervaded
through Henry VIII’s
(his son) reign until the late
1530‘s,
when Italian influences,
imported via musicians coming
from Venice and Milan, began
to make their impression on
English courtly life.
Musically, the two most
important parts of the king’s
court were the Chapel Royal,
and the “Pryvat chambre". The
former was made up of twenty
singing men and ten boys. The
boys received a thorough
instruction in all subjects,
their teachers being members
of the Chapel, such as William
Cornish (Master of the
Children) and Robert Fayrfax.
The Chapel Royal (which in its
entirety also included
clerical staff) accompanied
the king on his travels until
1526 when it became apparent
that long journeys would be
much easier whit a smaller
entourage. Thereafter only the
Master of the Children and six
singing men were allowed to
travel with the royal
household. The secular
musicians of Henry’s
court were assigned to one of
three groups; trumpeters,
minstrels, and string
minstrels. The trumpeters were
the most important because of
their importance on ceremonial
occasions (when they were
required to announce events
with fanfares), and at court
where they heralded royal
personages. Other important
wind musicians were the sackbut
and shawn players - a
combination which was much in
demand for the dance music of
the court. Only string players
were in the minority; until
1526 there were only two rebec
players at court and a harp
player. In
the same year another rebec
player, two continental viol
players and lutenists appeared
on the payroll. Numbers
steadily increased and at the
time of the king’s
death, the secular musicians
included lutenists Master
Giles, the brothers Philip and
Peter van Wilder, and a group
of six italian viol-players.
Professional dancers were also
part of the court, the most
prized being Mark Smeton who
was oftimes summoned to dance
for Anne Boleyn (second of Henry’s
wives) in her chamber. The
most important musicians were
the keyboard players - they
were valued for their
virtuosity and really had very
little connection with the
other musicians of the court.
They were John Heyward,
Benedictus de Opitiis, and Fra
Dionisius Memo (from Venice
where he had been the organist
at St. Marks). The two most
responsible members of the
musicians seem to have been
William Cornish and Peter van
Wilder, Cornish was Master of
the Children at the Chapel Royal
and van Wilder in charge of
the instruments at
Westminster. This entailed
administrative duties of
course, some quite ordinary,
such as a payment to van
Wilder for shawms and
sackbuts, and others quite
suprising, such as one to
Cornish. "Mr. Cornisshe,
paving, gutters of lead for
urinals and other necessaries
at Greenwich". This may well
refer to jousts held in
Greenwich that year. It is
rather doubtful that Cornish
would have been responsible
for the general repairs of the
Chapel Royal!
Of course not all music-making
was left to professionals,
much was performed in the
course of conversing or as a
sign of good manners. Henry,
for example, often played and
sang for visiting ambassadors
or during his travels
throughout England. Most
amateur music-making must,
however, have been done behind
closed doors. There are no
references to such ocassions,
or are these part of the
“pastimes in chambers with
company”? Certainly most of
the pieces, that form the
collection from which our
selection for this recording
have been taken, could have
easliy been performed by
amateurs, as well as
professionals.
The King’s Musical
Instruments
L ke all royal households the
Tudor household
kept a great number of
instrurvents for the use of
court musicians and talented
amateurs at court. Henry’s
collection was particularly
rich and was housed at various
locations in and around
London. An inventory taken at
the time of his death includes
the following list of
instruments.
The King’s Instruments (From
an Inventory of the
Guarderobes... 1547)
At Greenwich
1 Regal
with case
1 Regal and
Virginals
1 Pair of
Virginals
1 Ivory
horn
At Westminster
(in the study next to the
Bellechambre)
1 Antique
horn garnished with silver
2 Copper
horns
(inthe charge of Philip van
Wilder)
3 Organs
5 Double
Regals
13 Regals
7 Double
Virginals
12
Virginals
25 Lutes
21 Cornets
2
Clavichords
19 Viols
5 Spanish
viols or Gitterons
79
Recorders
6 Fifes
76 Flutes
1 Pipe for
a taberde
17 Shawms
11
Crumhorns
13
Dulceuses
6 Bagpipes
At Hampton Court
2 Portative
organs
2 Regals
1 Pair of
Virginals
7 Crumhorns
At Windsor
1 Double
Regal
At the More
2 Pair of
Virginals (old)
1 Regal
(broken)
At Newhall
1 Great
Organ
1 Pair of
Virginals (very old and
broken)
1 Old lute
At Nottingham Castle
1 Old pair
of organs
The Guarderobe of the Robes
17 Horns
At Saint James House
1 Pair of
organs
At Westminster
(in the little study)
1 Antique
horn
The Music
1. The Songs
Most of the music on this
recording is taken from a
song-book which reflects
musical life at court during
the first part of Henry VIII’s
reign. Thirty of the pieces
can be ascribed to Henry
himself, and others to members
of his court musicians.
Besides English part-songs,
the collection contains many
instrumental pieces in the
form of dances and canons, and
song “hits” from the
continent. Compositions by the
king include songs, several
short instrumental pieces and
an extended setting of Taundernaken.
This is one of the best known
melodies of the period, and
Henry’s setting is only one of
many. Another occurs in
“Odhecaton” (published in
Venice in 1501 by Petrucci)
although considerably
different from Henry’s
version. Henry would certainly
known of this famous
publication either through his
Italian visitors or court
musiclans. The publication was
extremely popular and, as the
song-book shows, well known. Gentil
prince appears to have
started life as a three part
piece and appears in this form
in “Odhecaton”. Henry added
the extra part no doubt, as
his name occurs next to the
English setting. This
is also the case with Helas
Madam. The rather fussy
third voice part is quite
obviously a later addition.
The melody and words first
appeared in Antonius de
Arena’s “Ad Suos Compagnones,
qui sunt de persona friantes;
Bassas Dansas..." of 1536
where it is listed as a bass
dance. Henry’s version
contains several changes in
the melody line, although
these were most likely made
before the addition of the
third voice. Pastime with
good company expresses
admirably the sentiment of
Henry’s court (“...Hunt, sing
and dance... ")
and can justifiably be called
the "King’s Ballad". Even this
song however may not be
completely by Henry. It
bears a strong resemblance to
Richafort’s “De mon triste
desplaisir" - published in
Attaignant’s “Trente et quatre
chansons musicales" of 1529 -
and may well have been
modelled on it.
As can be seen, continental
influence was very strong. Many
foreign songs occur in this
collection. Ough warder
mount represents the german
“tenor lied” and can be found
in other versions, chiefly
continental. An interesting
English source is the Royal
Appendix 58 where it appears
as “Warda mut" (in fact a
rather crude entabulation of
the tenor and bass lines with
the cadences ornamented). The
other continental song on this
record is De tous bien
plane by Hayne van
Ghizeghem. This, like several
others, is taken from
“Odhecaton" and has had an
extra part added to a three
part version.
Of the English composers
represented, William Cornish
is the most important
contributor. Ah Robin
is an exquisite setting of Sir
Thomas Wyatt’s poem. This
canonic piece was probably
based on a popular song of the
period. The reworking of such
a song would have amused the
members of the court,
particularly in such a
reworking as Cornish’s. The
second song by Cornish, Blow
thi horn hunter, is one
of the “foster” or “foresster"
songs. The all too frequent
mention of chasing does, and
of bows and arrows is used as
a very thin disguising for
erotic double meanings, which
in Henry’s court would have
hardly
been missed. The constant
reference to the “greenwood”
and hunting and shooting make
these songs ideal for
performance, not only at
court, but also as part of the
annual “mayings”’ (held every
1st of May).
Of the two songs by Cooper one
is also a “foster” song. I
have been a foster
laments the aging of a foster.
“Every bow for me is too big;
mine arrow nigh worn is... ".
Though the mood is sad the
meanings are crystal clear. Farewell
my joy
is a song of parting. The
lover leaves his lady. Such a
song is presumably intended as
part of a courtly
entertainment.
Of the anonymous songs I love
unloved
shows the courtly
preoccupation with love. The
unrequieted love of a lover is
here so pathetically
expressed. Love was very
important in Henry’s court; to
be in love was essential, and
even when unreturned it
satisfied the curiosity of the
court. Every lover had his
ideal. The sun, brightness,
all things unattainable were
used to descibe the object of
the lover’s affections. This
is so admirably expressed in
the song Madam d’amours.
This is perhaps the most
striking song in the whole
collection. It
has a richness found in no
other song in the book
expressing the emotions of
courtly lovethrough the
courtly language.
2. The Instrumental Music
Interspersed
with the songs are many short
instrumental pieces, forthe
main part untitled. They are
in various styles; some
showing a strong dance
character (Consorts VIII, IX, X,
XII),
others a more polyphonic style
(XVI), and some (IX,
XXI) would seem to be written
out improvisation.
The titled instrumental pieces
are all in some way unusual.
It is very interesting to find
a composition by John
Dunstable at so late a date.
His Puzzle canon (one
of several contained in the
book) consists of two complete
parts and, instead of the
tenor, a clue as to the form
of the tenor line. Here the
clue is; “A dorio tenor hic
ascendens esse videtur, Quater
per genera tetracordum
refitetur“. (The tenor is seen
to ascend from
the Dorian and is repeated
through four kinds of
tetrachords). En vray
amour displays very
dance-like features and may
well be a bass dance - the
most popular dance at
Henry’s court. Fors seulement
is a setting of Ockeghem's
"Fors seulement l'attente"
and, as with the other continental
pieces, exists in several
other settings. The absence
of words and changes in
notes suggest that this is a
purely instrumental setting.
The pieces
for lute and Pavin and
Galliard of Albart
are taken from two other
books, which date from the
latter part of Henry’s
reign. The pavan-galliard
pair represent the new
Italian style. They use,
for their thematic
material, the theme “Belle
qui tiens ma vie" which
occurs much later in
"Orchesography" (a dance
treatise by Thoinot Arbeau
published in 1589). Here
the setting is for five
instruments.
The pieces for lute cannot
be dated with any
certainty before 1540. Pastyme
is an entabulation of the
“king’s ballad” - "Pastime
with good company". This
version has minor
differences and a surprise
ending! Warda mut
is simply an entabulation
of the tenor and bass
lines of Ough warder
mount. The Duke
of Somersette's Dompe
is the most substantial of
the three pieces for lute.
It
consists of six variations
on a ground. An earlier
version, under the title
“Padoana”, can be found in
Vincenzo Capirola’s lute
book of 1517 and another
in Hans Newsidler's book
of 1540 with the title
“ein sehr guter welscher
tantz im abzug" The dompe
(or dump) became an
accepted instrumental
form. There were two
types; the “merry dompe”
and the "doleful dompe"
and references to them are
common in literature of
the time. The Duke of
Somerset, for whom this
dompe was written was
Edward Seymour. He
received his title in 1547
and was sent to the tower
of London twice, being
executed in 1552.
It
is possible that the piece
was retitled to celebrate
Seymour’s receiving the
title.
Anthony
Bailes
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EMI Electrola
"Reflexe"
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