a mediaeval musical on Naxos + Hyperion's Children of our time

MONDAY 3 APRIL *NAXOS release ROBIN & MARION*
TONUS PEREGRINUS in a mediaeval musical by Adam 'the Hunchback'
"Adam de la Halle is justly the most famous composer of the late
13th century, and his greatest gift to posterity, 'Le Jeu de
Robin et de Marion', is the first-ever opera - a pastoral romp
brimming with delightful songs that easily stand the test of over
seven centuries.  In this authentic yet innovative performance by
TONUS PEREGRINUS, the narrator (John Crook) tells the story in
the original French dialect with his many voices - from coarse to
courtly - while the singers move between a contemporary English
interpretation and the timeless mediaeval lyrics and melodies of
the super-troubadour himself.  Time for some French wine and
plenty of cheese..."
NAXOS 8.557337 available in all good record shops and online.
more info at: http://shop.thewelcomestranger.org/index.asp?function=DISPLAYPRODUCT&productid=8

STOP PRESS... WEDNESDAY 29 MARCH c.7pm (c.2000GMT) *In Tune*
Dr John Crook and Antony Pitts interviewed about 'Robin & Marion'
on BBC Radio 3 - 90-93FM in the UK, and on the web at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radio3.shtml

MONDAY 3 APRIL *HYPERION release CHILDREN OF OUR TIME*
"In 1978 Schola Cantorum of Oxford recorded Tippett's Five Negro
Spirituals from 'A Child of our time'.  Some twenty years later,
under Jeremy Summerly, the choir was asked to make a new
recording of the Spirituals to mark the ninetieth birthday of the
composer, by then the group's long-standing Patron.  This new
disc [recently remastered from the archives and released for the
first time] is the result of those sessions, where the Tippett
works are complemented by recordings of the winning entries in an
international composition competition organized by the choir and
other works written for it around the same time.  And what an
astonishing display of choral pyrotechnics this produced.  From
the seductive intricacies of Mark Edgeley Smith's E E Cummings
settings, through the blues-infused harmonies of Antony Pitts's
polychoral 'Thou knowest my lying down', to the extended genius
of Francis Pott's 'amore langueo', this new disc offers
fascinating discoveries to the choral aficionado and seventy
minutes of the very finest choral experience to all."
HYPERION CDA67575 Schola Cantorum of Oxford / Jeremy Summerly
available in all good record shops and online

First performed by TONUS PEREGRINUS and broadcast in 1994, then
released on Unknown Public, and now the opening piece on Schola
Cantorum of Oxford's 'Children of our time', 'Thou knowest my
lying down' is the central panel in a triptych of Easter anthems
for twelve voices.  The twelve voices are divided into a higher
choir of six who sing the text (from Psalm 139) - the melody on
top is a continuously rising chromatic scale - while the lower
choir of six elaborate a simple chaconne repeating an answering
"Hallelujah!".  The conflict of these two compositional ideas is
worked out in harmonies that are sometimes transparently
consonant, sometimes rich and strange.  The soloistic vocal lines
give shape to the overall rhythmic motion of the piece,
converging from time to time like a giant wave rising out of the
sea.  More info at:
http://www.tonusperegrinus.co.uk/TPmsc090.html

Happy listening,

Antony Pitts
www.tonusperegrinus.co.uk