The Rodolfus Choir
Southern Sinfonia
The English Cornett & Sackbut Ensemble
Directed by Ralph Allwood
"They make a light, bright, exciting sound as evidenced by this terrific double CD of Monteverdi's Vespers ... real spring in their tone ... crystal diction throughout"
The Times
"This non-liturgical performance is terrifically fresh, especially in 'Dixit Dominus', 'Lauda Jerusalem' and the cross-rhythms of the Sonata 'Sopra Sancta Maria' ... great spirit and originality"
BBC Music Magazine
"There's something truly joyful about Ralph Alwood's Rodolfus Choir ... eloquent conviction of its young members ... By raising the lyrical qualities of Monteverdi's ground-breaking work above its dramatic, Allwood and his team forge a persuasive interpretation rich in nuance and fine details. A highly rewarding listen"
Classic FM Magazine
"The sound of choir and ensemble massed together is altogether pleasing, and the playing of the Southern Sinfonia is arguably this set's greatest strength"
Gramophone
Music of the seventeenth century was little known to the concertgoing
or record-buying public, up until fifty years or so ago when Monteverdi’s
Vespers were performed under the inspiration of figures such as Michael
Tippett as part of a modern revival of early music. Subsequently, it has
been one of the most celebrated works both with choral societies and early
music specialists.
Here, the Rodolfus Choir offer their interpretation of one of the most
magnificent works of the seventeenth century. Following their highly
successful release with Signum earlier this year, Choral Arrangements by
Clytus Gottwald, the Rodolfus Choir perform earlymusic as sensitively and
musically as they perform music of the twentieth-century.
Title page of the 1610 edition of Monteverdi's
Vespers
The English Cornett & Sackbut Ensemble can be found at: www.ecse.co.uk
