Missa Regali Ex Progenie / Lauda Vivi Alpha Et O

Robert Fayrfax (1464-1521), one of the younger composers represented in the famous Eton Choirbook, was evidently a protégé of Henry VIII himself. While not as flamboyant (or difficult to sing) as that of older Eton composers such as William Cornysh, Fayrfax's music has a sweetly tranquil quality--along with features typical of large-scale English church music at the time: intricate rhythmic interplay, alternation between full five- or six-voice choir and reduced-voice sections sung by soloists (high soprano/low bass is a favorite combination), and relative indifference to using the music to reflect specific sentiments of the text. The featured work on this disc (the fifth and final volume in ASV's Fayrfax series) is the Mass "Regali ex progenie," built around the titular chant melody stated in long note-values in the tenor voice--the cantus firmus structure more common on the Continent than in England. The Cardinall's Musick sings with reliable precision and clear, hearty tone; on earlier releases (in this series and others), Andrew Carwood has tended toward a slowish pace that dulls this music's ornate extroversion, but not here: his vigorous tempos maintain momentum and energy without seeming heavy-handed or vulgar. --Matthew Westphal