The Tallis Scholars - William Byrd - Vigilate

[CAROCHAPT]

Welcome to the Church of S Augustine, Kilburn.

Consecrated in 1880 and widely known as the 'Cathedral of North London', S Augustine's is an Anglo-Catholic Parish Church of the Church of England with roots in the Oxford Movement and a proud tradition of serving its vibrant and diverse community with an active programme of worship and outreach.

[CoxJoxSox]

Those Catholics knew how to build great spaces

[foodie65]

@CoxJoxSox This is St Augustine's Church in Kilburn London. Built in the 1860s. It's an Anglican not a Catholic church.

[JoelvanLennep]

Beautiful, but I feel slightly seasick. Rein in "artistic licence"!

[themrqwertymark]

Byrd liked those1, 7, 6, 7 runs before restoration to 1 chords didn't he?

[sunhoney1uk]

Regarding my typing...I'm pretty sure it's "pretty"

[sunhoney1uk]

regarding the church, I'm prettu sure it's St Augustine's in Kilburn, North London

[streiff100]

Does it get any better than the Tallis Scholars, hmmmmmm, NO! There the best!

I think William Byrd himself would not mind having them as his choir

[DrTimmy77]

Peter Phillips stands alone in the company of the greats in polyphonic music. Watching Peter lead the TS is a work of exquisite and soul-centering joy. Tessa still brings me to tears, miss her dearly. Continued success to Peter and the scholars.

[Vpyeryod]

anyone recognize the church they're in?

[sunhoney1uk]

@Vpyeryod I thinks it's st Augustine's kilburn

[angstrom1951]

Awesome music sung by an awesome ensemble! My tribute to Tessa Bonner: "I will sorely miss your beautifully clear voice! "Rest in Peace"

[MusicOfJOS]

Only with the Scholars could you find a music video for a renaissance piece. :)

[LeipzigKantor]

Oh my, what an amazing piece of music. Is not Byrd worthy of a position among the greatest?

[spamkkkiller]

@LeipzigKantor You said it!! I am always in awe when i hear his music sung in a manner which truly does it justice - such as the case with everything i've ever hear the Tallis Scholars produce. In my opinion, he and Vaughan Williams are the two greatest English composers EVER.

[vinciano]

@LeipzigKantor For sure

[sophelet]

Buy the whole DVD--it is filmed beautifully with different lighting for each piece. Also, it includes more pieces than you find on the CD of the same name. Great to see the singers as well as to hear them. Tessa Bonner--rest in peace.

[HaliacetusLeuco]

THE NEX+~* PRESIDEN+~+~*

[agustinalovecchio]

GENIAL!

[awyliu]

Beautiful! Tessa Bonner RIP.

[dalem]

Who's conducting? Looks like John Eliot Gardiner

[NiallMS]

@dalem Peter Phillips (as usual!)

[sophelet]

@dalem Peter Phillips--founder and sole conductor of the ensemble.

[NiallMS]

Glad this clip includes Tessa Bonner. So talented! RIP

[5619762]

Pure and divine

[gazaylamaya]

@5619762 why ?

[5619762]

the notes are ......how to say it ..........have a strong charterstics , its like they are serious and contains deep feeling and impression , the chords touch your soul and effect on them easly and make you feel like innocent voice is talking to you .. thats how i feel it , if you would like to ask anything feel free to ask .

[gazaylamaya]

sounds about right well said ( i am a bit dum when it comes to feelings and stuff but i new i liked it) cheers

[5619762]

@gazaylamaya

looool

no one is dum in feelings , you just have to be patient and listen to the piece few times , then it well get stucked in your head and your going to like it more with the coming days ;)

[musicallyspeakings88]

@gazaylamaya uh..... duh

[gazaylamaya]

@musicallyspeakings88 yep

[violistdagamba]

beautiful!

[fozziebear2009]

dimstar4now you are a crazy fucking bastard and should probably be locked up in an asylum somewhere. You are everything that is wrong with the world.

[mimitzka]

beautifully sung! i want to bathe in the sound

[LaTerzaPiccarda]

Ciao Peter!!!

[omoetamo]

Philips?

[digbads]

It seems odd to have women's voices with this music. Very very nice, though.

[manchego39]

Byrd would have used women on the top lines - these pieces were sung in private in Catholic houses.

[luseem16]

That's incorrect. Only the masses were sung secretly. His Cantiones Sacrae were published and dedicated to Elizabeth I, so would have been sung in cathedrals, collegiate chapels and churches, where all the singers were male.

[sophelet]

N@luseem16 Not necessarily. Some of these motets have coded language for the recusant Catholics.

[renaissance27]

up a m3 from ATTBB to SATBarB?

Or is this double tenor?

[renaissance27]

RIP Tessa Bonner we miss you and your voice dearly!

[genevaprojectfreak]

this recording of this piece is absolutely sick! best ive ever heard!

[MaBu888]

Very good acoustics.

[safetychoice]

So beautiful. English voices singing English music.

[tiernan87]

you can't beat it, can you! the English choral tradition is the incomparable standard.

[BlueberryLilly]

@safetychoice voix anglaises qui chantent de la musique anglaise ... en latin ;)

superbe !

[AngelaJGilroy]

@safetychoice Indeed. English, not British.

[landsckenech]

nos faltaba tambièn en espanol

[ExcelLied]

Está vigilante,

pues no sabes cuando el señor volverá a casa,

por la tarde o por la noche,

o cuando el gallo cante, o por la mañana:

por ello está vigilante,

no sea que venga de repente

y te encuentre durmiendo.

Y lo que te digo,

se lo digo a todos:

Está vigilante.

[landsckenech]

gracias

[ExcelLied]

De nada

[SingAndGlorify]

German translation:

So wachet nun, denn ihr wisst nicht, wann der Herr des

Hauses kommt, ob er kommt am Abend oder zur Mitternacht

oder um den Hahnenschrei oder des Morgens, auf dass er

nicht schnell komme und euch schlafend finde.

Was ich aber euch sage, das sage ich allen: Wachet!

[Ketrin01]

Danke!

[SingAndGlorify]

English translation: Watch ye therefore — for you know not when the lord of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cock crowing, or in the morning: Watch therefore, lest coming on a sudden, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch.

[SingAndGlorify]

Vigiláte, néscitis enim quando dóminus domus véniat, sero, an média nocte, an gallicántu, an mane. Vigiláte ergo, ne cum vénerit repénte, invéniat vos dormiéntes. Quod autem dico vobis, ómnibus dico: vigiláte. (based on Mark 13:35-37)

[PastorPope]

The Soprano on the end is very graceful

[ARADLL]

sense paraules musica mab majuscula

[HolyMotherofGrid]

One for the BEST choral groups ever - thanks for posting this.

[Shardith]

Does anybody know what cathedral this is filmed at?

[richardbristow17]

Glenville most definate.

[09fosterl]

I believe it is Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, but I am not certain

[TFT83]

Neither. It's Tewekesbury Abbey.

[Mimameior]

LOVE the Tallis Scholars - real singers with no gimmicks, just great voices and a love for great music...

[honeyspur]

The Tallis Scholars are at the very top, in my opinion, of excellence. I WISH we had their version of William Cornysh's "Magnificat" on here - that was my introduction to them and I was an instant fan from then on.

[paulschleuse]

This video is pirated from the Tallis Scholars' DVD "William Byrd: Playing Elizabeth's Tune." The group can use the money, so buy the DVD instead instead of watching a stolen version on YouTube!

[mjfindlay1968]

It may be borrowed but now that I have seen it I may be willing to buy one of their DVD's. I have found a lot of music on You Tube that I like then I go buy what I like the best. I have never heard of this group before this.

[slayerpianoman]

Without youtube, i never would have found this, and wouldn't be inclined to buy ANY thing from them. Perhaps, look at the good effects, instead of the bad ones...

[obxemt]

Yeah, no one should worry about international copyright law. No big deal.

[slayerpianoman]

I never said downloading and keeping something is good, what i mean is that if the copyright law isn't broken somehow and portions of material like this aren't leaked out, thousands of people wouldn't know material like this existed, and these people wouldn't get as much money. Now that i know these guys exist, im willing to go out and buy the dvd. had someone not posted this, then... well, i sure wouldn't know who these guys are, and therefore i would not buy the dvd, same goes for others

[obxemt]

I was being sarcastic. Partially. ;-)

[Kutsenbernz]

Beautiful music, and beautifully filmed. Thanks paulschleuse for letting me know what DVD it's from, and thanks to erialm for posting it -- if it wasn't posted I would never have known about it. I'm about to order it online right now. It will make a wonderful Christmas gift -- I'll be buying a few copies.

Thanks again, erialm.

[365275]

paulschleuse - Don't be so ridiculous. Youtube will bring them to a much wider audience - and far greater CD & download sales - that having their CDs just stuck in a shop.

[AlainNaigeon]

@paulschleuse I've bought several CDs and DVDs after having discovered excerpts on YT.

[patdunachie]

This is fantastic, i am lucky enough to have a lesson with the male alto here, seen on the right at 3.27, the music is fantastic and though I could ask Patrick tommorow, does anyone know where this is filmed?

[BRavichandran]

Merton College, Oxford, I think.

[pianoboexxx]

nice church :)

[TFT83]

No, Tewkesbury Abbey.

[patdunachie]

This is fantastic, i am lucky enough to have a lesson with the male alto here, seen -----, the music is fantastic and though I could ask Patrick tommorow, does anyone know where this is filmed?

[janeym]

oh and by the way I got to chat with Peter and Janet and they were incredibly nice and down to earth. I was a little shocked by it haha. and Janet was very expressive and bubbly so to speak so they are not dead musicians haha =p

[humpo123callum]

this has plenty of dynamics and texture, and no its not sung operatically or with great feeling because that is how renaissance and elizabethan polyphony is supposed to be sung! it is sung as a choir not as a selection of individual singers, which is much harder to do than any cantor or solo singing.

[firebreathone]

WOW.

Pure music!

[janeym]

well despite what everyone else says this is certainly good enough for me! and I can't wait to go see them live in new york next week!

[JessieDallton]

I love this group. Thank you for the clip.

[edders05]

The Tallis Scholars are excellent, and impeccable as regards rhythm etc, but my main problem with them is they don't give the music any life or expression...it just takes away that little something that would make listening to them a completely magical experience.

[Martinskiy]

If that is right, that they don't give the music any life or expression, then that is precisely why The Tallis Scholars are so exceptionally good. It all depends on the aesthetic expectation of the listener. The music might be fine as it comes of the pen of the composer, it might not need any further life or expression beyond the melodic contours.

[edders05]

But we know that the vast majority of music from this period was written without any dynamic indication - yet singing 'vigilate' (watch) and 'dormiens' (sleeping from 'lest he catch you sleeping' is something the vast majority of recordings I've heard don't do.

[MerricMaker]

Yes, but oftentimes, when people talk about musicians having "energy" or "expression," this is often code for musicians who are late or inaccurate. Think of how they're shaping their vowels, singing their line and getting out of the way, that's all deliberate and quite musical. Perhaps just not to your taste.

[IUFTR]

Obviously the conductor does not rehearse the music. I don't see him do any thing but cue. There is no control. The voices are mostly good, but they sound like a group vocalizing. He just turns them loose.

'Tis true, 'tis pity. 'Tis pity, 'tis true.

[AndreaSPitaim]

Oh, my... you're so wise! Please, go sleep.

[MerricMaker]

The King's Singers don't have a director at all, does that mean they don't rehearse? Professional groups rehearse every day and know their music and each other well enough that when performance comes along the presence of the director is almost superfluous. Just because some guy isn't waving his arms doesn't mean work wasn't done in hours of practices.

[IUFTR]

Byrd is not Concone or Vaccai. This sounds like a laundary list to me. In his own words, Peter P. does not rehearse much. His singers are too good to need to do so. Please! They don't rehearse every day. The point is, there is nothing subtle about this singing. Further, I doubt P.P. would know what to do in a rehearsal other than let them sing until they get the notes, then record. Same volume all the way through-no shading, just SING,and that operatically!

[MerricMaker]

Equating their singing to opera is inaccurate. Operatic singing in groups gives little consideration to blend. The worst choirs on earth are operatic choruses, lots of has-beens and haven't-quite-yet-beens trying to outsing one another, this group does not do that. And yes, pros don't have to rehearse, "very much" but that translates into a fair amount of time, particularly with a new piece or when you get into the really tiny details, as this group does.

[IUFTR]

Perhaps the word "light" opera should be used. Lines 1-4 make the point.Lines 5-8-WHAT?

Fine performances have a single-mindedness behind them, not a free-for-all!

[Microshrimp]

I was lucky to see them perform a few years ago within walking distance of my apartment! It was definitely one of the greatest musical experiences I have had.

Sadly, the venue had a problem with lights--they went out during the show and came back on a few seconds later, but messed the singers up. You could tell Peter Phillips was mad, but he joked about it after intermission, so I guess it could have been worse! I have a feeling that they'll probably never come back though...

[jewish1972]

do not know why, english choirs sing rennaissance music the best, whether from England or abroad. The 1st tenor is very cute.

[cuckthefardinals]

I am sorry to say that I disagree with most of you. As for William Byrd, absolutely wonderful. One of my favorite English composers.

However, I have a bit of a disliking for the Tallis Scholars. They are rather "vanilla" in comparison to their English counterparts, the Consort of Musike, and especially the Hilliard Ensemble. They have a fine tone quality, but there is no movement really in the music. Plus, Peter Phillips is really kind of a pompous ass...

[cuckthefardinals]

I've have read numerous interviews and accounts with him, and he really puts off this know-it-all attitude, even though he doesn't even compare with the likes of Paul Hillier or Anthoney Rooley. Or Paul Elliot, Rogers Covey-Crump, or many others, for that matter.

[ixion567]

on wich cd is this song? its great

[erialm]

This can be found on the DVD called "Singing Elisabeth's tune".

[Kekimoty]

Beautiful.

[ergvel1]

The Tallis, the best!! Love them... long tadition, love them when they do male voice cameratta

[slobone]

It's not a new soprano, it's the same old sopranos! Tessa Bonner and Deborah Roberts (the two blondes on the left) are still in the group and share the top part in this piece. And the group still sings the Allegri Miserere and will even be doing Spem in Alium in July 2007.

[janeym]

wait do you mean the two sopranos from the 1985 recording of spem in alium? it sounds like them...but its been a while!

[slobone]

In the early days the membership of the group varied. Tessa Bonner, but not Deborah Roberts, sang on the spem in alium recording. Deborah Roberts was performing with them by at least 1986.

[janeym]

thanks to you I think I finally know the name of the "amazing soprano" as she is known to my dad and me haha!

[ReinedeFrance]

What a glorious piece, always gives me goosebumps. I absolutely love the Tallis Scholars, they could make anyone appreciate sacred music.

[arkeo2001]

An amazing masterwork of music played by an amazing and extraordinary ensemble!

[k0229071]

The Tallis Scholars is by far one of the most talented vocal ensemble in the world. I have heard them in Philadelphia, Ann Arbor and in London and I must say each time they get better and better. I love this group.

[janeym]

is this recent?

[erialm]

Yes; I believe it was recorded in 2006.

[janeym]

wow! They have a great soprano right now, like the one they had in the 80's (she was on the album with Spem in Alium.)

[thankyousir1]

awesome! I love the tallis scholars