The combination of the dark shadings of Spanish Renaissance composer
Tomás Luis de Victoria
's
Tenebrae Responsories
with the most solemn texts of the Christian liturgical year has been irresistible for many years, and recordings of these 18 motets for the Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday are abundant. This one, however, is almost unique, thanks to two features: it is sung in a possible low transposition, and the performance is by a solo quartet, one voice per part. Both these interpretive decisions may be a matter of taste. From this listener's perspective, the first is desirable, the second less so. The low voice ranges intensify the serious mood, but a small choir would have been a likelier set of performers in
Victoria
's time. Those who don't buy the one-voice-per-part fashion, though, will be pleased that the vocal group
I Fagiolini
avoids madrigalist gestures; the singing is sober, keeping clear as well of El Greco-esque dark gestures. Another unique feature of this release, at least for physical album buyers (they are not present in online versions of the album), is the presence of poems by
Christopher Reid
, describing the last days and the death of his wife. The poems are read by
founder and director
Robert Hollingsworth
. Again, this is a matter of taste; this could have gone completely off the rails, but to these ears, the mixture is persuasive. In short, this release by
, inaugurating a new relationship with the
Coro
label, definitely succeeds in distinguishing itself from other recordings of these motets. With fine sound from Milton Abbey, this album made classical best-seller charts in early 2024 as it appeared just in time for that year's Easter season. ~ James Manheim