Tallis: Lamentations Of Jeremiah

"The Tallis Scholars' third recording of music by Tallis is a worthy successor to their two earlier selections, the motets (CDGIM 006) and the English anthems (CDGIM 007). It opens with the two Lamentations settings, which offer scope for them to display their effortless technique and their sensitivity to the text. The heightened tension of such moments as 'et ipsa oppressa amaritudine', marked by clear declamation and firm entries, is offset by other, quieter moments: the settings of the Hebrew letters - 'Beth', for example - at a gentler pace and in a calmer mood; and also the call to repentance, 'Jerusalem … convertere', which concludes each Lamentation.

"The eight motets are presented in two groups: those labelled 'Mean' include the adventurous Derelinquat impius, with its bold upward leaps of a seventh; those with the heading 'Treble' have the emphasis on the high leading soprano part. This group includes the O salutaris - with a surprise burst of light at the end with the major cadence, almost in the manner of Wilbye - and the ever-popular O nata lux, taken at a moderate tempo, with the singers indulging in a lingering false relation in the final cadence.

"Tallis's monumental early masterpiece Salve intemerata virgo is the undoubted highlight of the recording. It presents any conductor with formidable problems, not least on account of the length of its text - a fully-developed doctrinal statement of belief. The Tallis Scholars, undaunted by its unwieldiness, keep it well under control: the phrasing, both of the individual melodic strands and of the whole unfolding structure is handled with care and understanding, and the planned dynamics lead naturally to a superb climax. This is a masterly performance."

Mary Berry (Gramophone, May 1992)