Towards the end of the 14th century, England saw the rise of a pleasingly consonant musical style that was admired abroad as the 'English manner.' Paul Hillier and the Hilliard Ensemble are heard in a selection of the most beautiful polyphonic songs and carols from this rich period. 'The performance...match the beauty of the music - a sound of remarkable purity. Their ensemble singing is perfection itself, and each part is exquisitely phrased.' - Stereo Review

This is a 2 CD set, CD #1 has 71 minutes of Italian madrigals, CD #2 has 55 minutes of English madrigals. Perhaps the most important secular musical development of the 16th century, the madrigal had its fullest flowering in Italy, where Franco-Flemish composers Phillippe Verdelot, Adrian Willaert and Jacques Arcadelt, born in northern Europe, spent their working lives. In England Thomas Morley, John Wilbye and Thomas Weelkes succeeded in producing some real masterpieces. There are 26 cuts on disc #1, all in Italian, 'Cantiam lieti cantiamo,' 'Una leggiadra nimpha,' 'Con l'angelica riso,' 'Donne, venete al ballo'-all flow like sweet water from this talented, precise British sextet. Disc 2 has 22 cuts, all in English: Morley's 'April is in my mistress' face,' Wilbye's 'Sweet honey sucking bees,' Weelkes' 'O care thou wilt dispatch me,' Orlando Gibbons' 'The Silver Swan'-and they are equally fine. Recommended.

Listen to The Silver Swanne in RealAudio.

Of all the north European composers who made their careers writing beautiful secular madrigals in sixteenth-century Italy, Josquin Desprez is regarded as the greatest. Fusing learned polyphony with rhythmic gaity, the madrigal was hugely popular in Italy and England. The brilliant British male octet The Hilliard Ensemble, sounding very much like angels, are one of few groups who can do justice to this difficult, soaring material. From the sacred 'Ave Maria... Virgo serena,' 'Veni Sancti Spiritus,' and 'De profundis clamavi' to the secular 'Petite camusette,' 'Je me complains' and 'Je ne me puis tenir d'aimer,' this is wonderful music. 13 songs. Extensive liner notes give lyrics and translations.

Singing clubs of one kind or another played a small but key role in the history of English convivial music. Bustling 17th-century coffee house and taverns were venues for the singing of rounds and catches. Not particularly sophisticated, but many composers, Purcell the most prominent, created a series of miniatures whose wit and melodic invention have rarely been equaled. Acclaimed all-male septet The Hilliard Ensemble, directed by Paul Hillier, divides 'The Singing Club' in two parts, beginning with 'The Catch Club,' Thomas Ravenscroft's 'A Round of three country dances in one' and 'There were three ravens,' John Hilton's 'Call George again, boys,' William Lawes' 'Drink tonight of the moonshine bright,' 'Dainty fine aniseed water fine' and 'Gather your rosebuds while you may,' John Wilson's 'Where the bee sucks, there suck I,' Purcell's 'Tis woman makes us love' and 'Sir Walter enjoying his damsel,' Thomas Arne's title tune and others. The second part, 'The Glee Club,' features the upbeat 'Foresters sound the cheerful horn' by Henry Bishop, Thomas Arne's 'Sigh no more, ladies,' John Smith's 'The Anacreontick Song,' Robert Pearsall's 'There is a paradise on earth,' and Joseph Bamby's 'Sweet and low.' 21 spirited, lilting, romantic a cappella songs that touch and cheer us on many levels-a beautiful, joyous CD!

Whereas most of Hilliard Ensemble's recordings have been designed around a particular composer or collection of music, this disc is content simply to offer The Hilliard Ensemble 'in recital', and presents a mixed programme of early vocal music - including many of the group's favourite pieces.

Arvo PŠrt's contemporary sacred work, St. John Passion, is sung in Latin and recalls the purity and timelessness of the great musical passions of the seventeenth century. Recorded from Durham's magnificent medieval cathedral, the performance features the Hilliard Ensemble and the Western Wind Choir, conducted by Paul Hillier. The solo parts are sung by John Potter (Pilate), Michael George (Christ), Mary Seers, David James, Roger Covey-Crump and Gordon Jones (The Evangelist Quartet). A short introduction precedes the work.