Henry's Eight, Jonathan Brown - Lassus: Penitential Psalms (2006)

In the 16th century as today, Lassus and Palestrina were considered two sides of a coin: Palestrina the consummate technician who wrote immaculate but emotionally removed counterpoint versus Lassus the passionate artist whose music was exciting but unlikely to appear in textbooks. Certainly this is an oversimplification, but it seems apt for this extraordinary release. These eight settings of Psalms for the Holy Week liturgy run from straightforward note-against-note declamation to imitative polyphony or from mellifluous chords to surprising dissonances--all according to the sense of the text. (Among other things, this music demonstrates that Gesualdo didn't come out of nowhere.) The changes are sometimes quite sudden, yet the music never seems disjointed. Henry's Eight bring the music thrillingly to life--most notably, they're not afraid to leaven their smooth, sweet sound when the text and music depict agonized contrition. This record is especially recommended for anyone inclined to dismiss Renaissance sacred music as dull. --Matthew Westphal