Acquitania - Christmas Music From Acquitanian Monasteries

I have the full set of Sequentia's Hildegard recordings as well as other works of theirs, so when I came across this is a suggestion last year I listened to the clips and bought it right away. This is kind of where we began in the Western World of Music, and it still stands as a valid music, unlike someone's early compositional efforts which they are embarrassed about in their older years. This music not only speaks to the mind be seeps into the heart and spirit.

This fine recording of vocal selections (mono and polyphonic) and instrumental pieces from the Middle Ages was a delight to open and listen to on Christmas morning with our breakfast and coffee. Sequentia delivers with crisp, clear diction, very fine intonation, and a varied selection of music not often recorded (many of these are premiere recordings, I believe).Highlights for me include the instrumentals (particularly track 7, great fiddles), the Alleluia, Uterus hodie (brilliant, unexpected progression of melodies), and Plebs domini (which crowns this recording much as "Christus vincit" crowns the the joint Sequentia/Dialogos recording Chant Wars. This recording is a real win for fans of sacred music, plainchant, or medieval music.

This music collection contains songs from the monastery choirs of Aquitania, I assume the Aquitaine of France. So it's a compilation of instrumental music and voices raised in song. I enjoyed this music as something different and would argue that it has high replay value, as it will take a while to really learn the songs. There is a fat book of liner notes that discusses the music and the instruments and the tradition of the songs as liturgical pieces celebrating Christmas; the lyrics of the songs are included in the liner notes as well.

This recording had me from the opening notes - rich, glorious, imperious! And no, you do not have to play it just at Christmas time, even though it is listed as Christmas music. This is no elevator-music blend of 'Frosty" or 'Rudolph' ilk, but a seamless fountain of 12th century monastic music (with a pinch of the troubador for a touch of flavor!) If you are a fan of the Tallis Scholars or the Anonymous 4, you will simply love this one!

very haunting music - this is my favourite kind of medieval music. I bought it with the 'Edda' disc and 'Shining Light' as well, and they are all wonderful. I find the very atmosphere in a room or house changes completely with this music playing, and relaxes the energy of a room - any of Sequentia's music does. Fantastic! Collect all of Sequentia's stuff!

An excellent recording of a little-known medieval genre. It's very enjoyable to listen to especially if you're into medieval polyphony. I can see why Queen Eleanor loved her Aquitaine so much.

I absolutely LOVE this CD. The music is enchanting, and carries you off to another time. It's stirring, simple and haunting, and it is now one of my favorite CDs.

Music for esoterics

morceaux méconnus qui valent réellement la peine d'être écoutés ; ils élèvent l'âme. je suis heureuse d'avoir retrouvé ce disque que j'avais écouté voici de nombreuses années et que j'avais presque renoncé à me le procurer jusqu'à ce que je le trouve ici.

Even before the more well known School of Notre Dame sprang up in the later 12th century, the considerably less famous School of Saint Martial of Limoges was an important centre of musical development knocking out tropes, sequences, conductus and organum style polyphony.The programme here consists of music for the Christmas period whose precise function is unclear but appear to be "paraliturgical", the texts often concentrating on the Virgin at a time when her cult was expanding. The pieces demonstrates considerable variety of form, and also some are sung by male and some by female choirs, some with instrumental accompaniment and with a couple of pure instrumental tracks thrown in to break it up.The vocals of the ensembles are wonderfully harmonious, delicate and warming, and skilfully show how much serenity and joy can be created from simple 2 voiced note upon note polyphony. The booklet contains some excellent notes plus full Latin sung texts and translations. A marvellous set all round and as good as anything Sequentia have ever done.This is the second of two discs by Sequentia of Aquitanian Christmas music of the 12th century, the earlier Shining Light is perhaps not quite so enjoyable as this following release, yet still worth obtaining.