Michael Noone & Ensemble Plus Ultra - Tómas Luis de Victoria: Sacred Works (2011)

Although the large box and the Sacred Works title might lead you to expect a complete collection of Tomás Luis de Victoria's sacred music, that's not what it is, and in fact some famous pieces, such as the Requiem in six parts, are not included. Instead, conductor Michael Noone lists the criteria for inclusion as follows: the collection focuses on works Victoria composed in Madrid, works that are preserved in manuscripts, works or versions of works that have never been recorded, and works involving an organ or winds, or written in sections that alternate with chant. That list, in turn, makes the album sound more specialized than it is; much of the music is gorgeous, and anyone interested in Renaissance polyphony can wander happily inside this box set for hours. The bottom line is that Noone and his Ensemble Plus Ultra seek to strip away from Victoria the aura of mysticism that casual listeners take away from hearing just a few of his famous masterpieces. The 90 pieces included on these ten discs (or equivalent) mkae up not only the small, exquisitely balanced motets in which Victoria darkened Palestrina's a cappella style, but the so-called alternatim pieces mentioned above, masses of various kinds (including large service works accompanied by winds (here His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts), and a variety of hymns, Magnificats, and more -- even a piece where someone elaborated the soprano line as if it were in an early Baroque opera, quite a weird effect (CD 5, track 11). Noone divides the music up mostly not into strict classifications but into programs that each contain contrasting music; you can dive in anywhere and get a selection of pieces that will all undermine your existing view of Victoria, and moreover give a sense of the range of Renaissance vocal music that isn't apparent in releases consisting of like material. The Ensemble Plus Ultra sings mostly with two voices per part, with some blended vibrato, and the performances have a real sense of excitement. Recommended for those with a strong interest in Victoria. -- James Manheim