PALESTRINA. Missa Papae Marcelli. Missa Brevis. Missa ad Fugain. Netherlands Chamber Choir conducted by Felix de Nobel. Philips NBL5o33 (12 in., 33s. it id.).

Missa Papae Marcelli :

Roger Wagner Chorale (9/51) CTL7010

Apart from the fact that the Philips disc contains three Masses to Capitol's one the performance of the Pope Marcellus Mass is much better than that of its predecessor. The movement of the parts is heard with greater clarity, the singing has more body and vitality, and the inner spirit of the music is more sensitively brought out by the conductor. One misses, of course, the tone of boys' voices on the top line and also the full-blooded tenors and basses of the best Roman choirs : but the conductor wisely does not try to employ dynamics that would be alien to his choir and his sopranos keep a good line.

The joyful and flowing singing of the Amens at the end of Gloria and Credo create a most lovely effect : but why did not Mr. de Nobel have the priest's intonations sung (as they were on the Capitol disc) by a member of his choir ? It is most inartistic to start these movements with truncated texts.

The beautiful and gentle Missa Brevis, for four voices, suits the choir especially well and is sung, I suspect, from the excellent "arrangement for modern use" made by Henry Washington and published by Messrs. Chester. This edition employs the Solesmes vertical episima, a short stroke placed above or below a note to define the verbal rhythm of each part and secure against bar line accentuation. Whether this edition is used or not the rhythmic impulse in each part is finely conveyed by the singers : without this Palestrina's music loses all its proper freedom and flow.

The early Mass, Ad fugam, also for four voices, is not contrapuntal in the modern sense of the title, but a study in double canon, ingeniously worked out but music that never takes wings as do the great Masses. (The Credo is not set.) It is, however, interesting to hear this technical preparation for the glorious achievements that were to come, though I would cheerfully have sacrificed it for one or more of the motets. Perhaps Mr. de Nobel will give us a disc of these and include Assumpta est Maria and Hodie Christus Natus est (the Nixa discs of these works are now withdrawn).

The recording is excellent but a little lacking in "atmosphere ", though one only really becomes conscious of that at the end of movements when the sound drops dead. At the same time echo would. of course, have slightly blurred the part writing, but even so I should have preferred it.

I hope this admirable disc has a sleevepicture worthy of Palestrina's music and the choir's performance. A.R.