England’s Phoenix: William Byrd— Quire Cleveland/Ross Duffin (Quire 106)
Music for this CD was recorded live in concert last May at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Akron and St. Peter Church, Cleveland. William Byrd was England’s greatest Renaissance composer. A contemporary of Shakespeare, Byrd (ca.1540–1623) was a Catholic composer at a time when being a member of the Church of Rome was illegal in England. Yet he composed with apparent impunity, because of the esteem with which he was held by his contemporaries and by Queen Elizabeth I. This program includes motets and anthems, nestled around the magisterial Mass for 5 Voices. (Note: link sends you to Quire Cleveland’s website.)
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