Masses by Tómas Luis de Victoria

Available for over a year

Tess Knighton comes up with a recommendation for Victoria's Masses from among available versions. One of eleven children, Spaniard Tomás Luis de Victoria's family was peppered with high-achievers (cousins included a naval commander, a Jesuit pioneer in the New World and a successful Florentine-based merchant who married into the Medicis). But Tomás trumped them all to become one of the greatest church composers of Renaissance Europe, famous for the intensity of his music, including his Mass settings. Perhaps surprisingly, the recording catalogue reflects a still-current tradition of Victoria performance begun at Westminster Cathedral at the end of the nineteenth century, and a comparative dearth of Iberian performances of the Masses. Top recommendation: Victoria: Sacred Works VICTORIA: Missa Pro Victoria; Missa Pro Defunctis; Psalms and Responsories; Lamentations of Jeremiah; Missa Gaudeamus; Magnificat Octavi toni; Missa Ave Maris Stella; Missa de Beata Virgine; Motets; Magnificat Primi Toni; Alma Redemptoris Mater; Missa O quam gloriosum; Christe redemptore omnium; Doctor bonus amicus Dei Andreas; Tibi Christe; Music for the Easter Liturgy in Habsburg Madrid; Missa Ave Regina caelorum for eight voices; Motets and music for Vespers; Missa Salve a 8; Motets and Hymns for the liturgical year Ensemble Plus Ultra, Michael Noone DG ARCHIV 4779747 Other recordings: Below is a shortlist of other recordings which Tess Knighton also liked, although we can’t guarantee the availability of these discs. Victoria: Missa Ave Maris Stella VICTORIA: Missa Ave Maris Stella; O quam gloriosum, motet; Missa O quam gloriosum Westminster Cathedral Choir, David Hill (conductor) HYPERION CDA66114