‘Passion’, The Orlando Consort

Supreme masters of their art, these four well-matched male voices treated us to exquisite masterpieces of late-medieval/early Renaissance polyphony, written for Passion Week and Easter. The church acoustic favoured the higher voices but the blend was excellent throughout. So was the diction, allowing us to follow the words easily. It was also possible just to luxuriate in the elegant patterns of sound and complex rhythms, as finely wrought and coloured as a stained-glass window. This calm, devotional concert was bursting full of delights. My favourite piece was Sheryngham’s seemingly simple dialogue ‘Ah, gentle Jesu’, a haunting commentary on the Passion.

All Saints’ Church, Hove, 16 March 2013

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