Missa Tournai

Album review

The Mass of Tournai, dating from between 1330 and 1349, is generally adjudged the earliest coherent polyphonic mass cycle in the literature, despite the existence of other early fourteenth century contenders found in Toulouse, Sorbonne, and Barcelona. It has been recorded only once before with female voices by the Norwegian ensemble Trio Mediæval for ECM; this Ricercar recording of the Tournai Mass is the first recorded outing by Ensemble de Caelis, a group of multi-national singers based in France. Consisting of five women, including director Laurence Brisset, this group has been in existence a decade, and its fine vocal blend shows it. It also works with a sound basis in scholarship, as well, as it folds the Tournai Mass into an office intended for use in a convent, thereby sidestepping the issue that the group members' gender precludes them from authentically delivering a work like this one, compiled for the predominantly male singers at Tournai.
While the group is experienced, this is a first recording, and some short passages exhibit some nervousness, particularly the opening Philippe de Vitry motet in which the locus of pitch moves around a bit. This soon stabilizes, and Ensemble de Caelis' reading of the passages in Gregorian chant is especially superb. The slight flexibility of pitch actually deepens the effect and beauty of their rendering of the Credo from the Tournai Mass. The Tournai Mass hasn't been recorded in a quantity anywhere near in keeping with its exalted status; indeed, among the competition, only the mass from Barcelona has been recorded at all. The first Tournai Mass on record, made in 1960 under the direction of Pierre Boulez, was both heavily arranged and heavily influenced by the example of Anton Webern. The most well traveled Tournai Mass is one made in 1990 by Ensemble Organum under Marcel Pérès, though its Arabic flavoring and experimental approach to ornamentation might not be to all tastes. Therefore, the Ensemble de Caelis recording for Ricercar enters the field as an excellent alternative to most others, and for any period vocal group, this would be an outstanding first recording.

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