About this Artist

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Editorial Reviews

Originally released in 1997, Arte Nova's Cathedral Sounds reflects in its title a marketing trend of that decade: interest in Gregorian chants and other Roman Catholic music was high, and many choral discs were promoted for their meditative ambience and soothing sonorities. One has to wonder, though, if this recording of Johannes Ockeghem's late-Gothic works really sold well because its title vaguely suggested the "chill-out" qualities of a cathedral's resonant acoustics, or if its fascinating music and high-quality performances were the real draw. Anyone already familiar with the versatile René Clemencic and the superb Clemencic Consort can expect ultra-refined performances of the "Missa sine nomine" and the "Alma redemptoris Mater," two works familiar to devotees of early church music, and to enjoy a novel solution for trombone and organ of the instrumental motet "Ut heremita solus," a riddle constructed on an encoded tenor part. However, those who enjoy listening to Medieval and Renaissance church music mostly for the putative sedative effects will probably find this disc a bit too active in counterpoint and changeable in instrumentation to be fully relaxing, though much of the album is quite sublime in mood and conducive to serious reflection. This 2007 reissue still sounds marvelous 10 years after its first release and is remarkable for its clarity of tone and immaculate reproduction; listeners are advised to play this disc at safe middle volume because the levels are unexpectedly high. Blair Sanderson, All Music Guide

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