Francisco de Peñalosa (c.1470-1528) Sanctorum meritis played on a consort of “Virdung” recorders
Recorded by the ensemble Brisk on their CD “Canção – Music from the Iberian Peninsula”, Globe Records 2018, GLO5268, www.brisk.nl
Performers: Marjan Banis (diskant); Susanna Borsch (alt); Bert Honig (tenor); Alide Verheij (bass).
Hugh Aston [Asseton, Assheton, Ashton, Haston] (c.1485–1558): Hugh Ashton’s Maske played on a consort of “Virdung” recorders
Recorded by the ensemble Artesonada in the Delistraat workshop, 27th June 2006.
This is probably a late piece to play on what are ostensibly 15th century recorders, but we all found that the piece showed off the instruments in a great light.
Performers: Michael Hell (soprano); Sabrina Frey (alto); Susanna Borsch (tenor); Reinhild Waldek (bass).
Download: 3.34 MB
Nicolas Gombert: Mille Regres (c. 1545) played on a consort of recorders after HIERS/HIES (alto in a’, tenor in d’, two bassets in g, bass in c, and a great bass in F)
Performed by the ensemble Mezzaluna in the Stadhuis, Deventer, 2nd Feburary 2007.
This six-part piece with its extra lines lying both above and below the normal vocal four-part range fits well on five sizes of recorder a fifth apart and shows the degree to which the fifth system can be successfully extended.
Performers: Peter van Heyghen (superius); Andreas Helm (cantus); Thomas List (altus); Sébastien Marq (tenor); Raphaela Danksagmüller (sextus); Susanna Borsch (bass).
Download: 3.82 MB
Alvise Willaert: Pianza’l Grego Pueta (1564) played on a consort of recorders after !!. (alto in g’ two tenors in c’ basset in f and extended basset in f)
Performed by the ensemble Mezzaluna in the Stadhuis, Deventer, 2nd Feburary 2007.
This moving piece written by the otherwise unknown Alvise Willaert to mark the death of his illustrious uncle uses the convention of a second bass part which while making use of the usual bass register, occasionally slips to a low E. This makes it an idea piece to illustrate the use of an extended recorder, which would otherwise necessitate a larger (fourth) size.
Performers: Peter van Heyghen (canto); Thomas List (alto); Sébastien Marq (tenor); Raphaela Danksagmüller (basso I); Susanna Borsch (basso II).
Download: 8.40 MB
Braga manuscript 964, anonymous: Entrada; Verso do 1º tom por D lasolre; Kyrio (c.1620) played on a consort of recorders after HIERS/HIES (alto in a’, two tenors in d’, two bassets in g, two basses in c, and a great bass in F)
Performed by the ensemble A Imagem da Melancolia as part of the project O consort português mal temperado (The Bad Tempered Portuguese Consort) in the church Igreja de S. João da Foz, Porto, 6th of February 2008
These three short pieces demonstrate the grand jeu/petit jeu principle while using recorders tuned a fifth apart, as indicated by Mersenne. The first piece has the two choirs playing in octaves, which although not a practice actually indicated by Mersenne, may well be his intention. This necessitates different fingerings between the two choirs, as there is an interval of a ninth separating them.
Performers: Andrea Guttmann, Inês Moz Caldas, Marco Magalhães, Matthijs Lunenburg, Paulo Gonzales, Pedro Castro, Pedro Sousa Silva and Susanna Borsch.
Download: 4.98 MB
Pedro de Araújo: Batalha (c.1660) played on a consort of recorders after HIERS/HIES combined with a consort after !! (soprano in d” alto in g’, tenor in c’ basset in f, tenor in d’, basset in g, bass in c, and a great bass in F)
Performed by the ensemble A Imagem da Melancolia in the church Igreja de S. João da Foz, Porto, 6th of February 2008
For this late piece the ensemble needed to revert to a fifth/forth configuration and so two sets of recorders were combined. Although we know that by the second half of the 17th century, recorders were made in this configuration, there are no surviving consorts of this type containing large instruments. Of course, if old instruments continued to be played into the late 17th century, it would be logical to think of them used this way.
Performers: Andrea Guttmann, Inês Moz Caldas, Marco Magalhães, Matthijs Lunenburg, Paulo Gonzales, Pedro Castro, Pedro Sousa Silva and Susanna Borsch.
Download: 11.00 MB
Aurelio Virgiliano: Ricercate per flauto, cornetto, violino, traversa e simili (c.1600) played on a dolcimelo alto recorder in g’, a-466 Hz
Performed by Susanna Borsch in Q Studios, Amsterdam on the 16th of February 2017.
Download: 11.00 MB