Classical Music | Ensemble Music

Recorded on 06/08/2016, uploaded on 01/25/2017

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

The Choise      Anthony Holborne (1545 – 1602)

“Music Through the Ages”                                                             Arr. Jeff Luke

Hildegard of Bingen was a 12^th century German abbess, writer, composer, philosopher, and mystic. Jeff Luke’s decision to begin this suite with a solo low brass voice is a beautiful nod to Hildegard’s highly melismatic, monophonic compositional style. Each movement of this suite introduces another voice into the ensemble. Léonin is the most significant composer of polyphonicorganum and it makes sense that Jeff chose to set one of his chants as the two-voice movement. For the three-voice movement, Jeff chose a piece by Franco-Flemish composer Guillaume Du Fay. Du Fay was considered to be the leading composer in Europe in the mid-15th century. As the suite adds voices it also moves forward through time. Anthony Holborne was a 16^th century composer of English consort music. His Pavans, Galliards, Almains and other short Aeirs… for Viols, Violins, or other Musicall Winde Instruments was published in 1599 and consisted of 65 of his own compositions, including “The Choise.” Jeff Luke’s arrangement of these pieces is a lovely setting that works well for brass voices.      Seraph Brass

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.