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I first became acquainted with the music of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562-1621) when I was studying at university in the mid 1970s. As part of my degree, I took music history, composition and analysis, and much of the first year was given over to composers of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque. Sweelinck was one of the composers that we spent some time on, because of his international reputation as a teacher and organist, and also as a composer.
He was very highly regarded by his contemporaries. Students came from far and wide to study with him, and his knowledge of all the main schools of composition of the period was legendary. He was especially well known as an organist and harpsichordist, and his music for those instruments has drawn the most attention. This I find quite interesting, because it was as a vocal composer that I first became acquainted with his music.
This set of three CDs encompasses works that are representative of his Latin-based psalms (as opposed to the ones in French which were for private use and written throughout his life). The period was a complex one, both regionally and religiously, and his life straddled the junction between the Renaissance and the Baroque. The programme notes are excellent, going into considerable detail about the thirty-nine works presented here and about Sweelinck's place in history generally.
On opening the first disc, the first work presented is Psalm 150. This is for choir alone. One is struck by the rich textures and the superb choir. I have always been impressed with this choir whenever I have heard it, and this certainly does not disappoint.
Listen — Sweelinck: Psalm 150
(96928 CD1 track 1, 2:48-3:40) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
Many of the works are so beautifully blended that it is sometimes difficult to detect if instrumentalists are playing, and what forces have been used. This is not to say that the music lacks colour - far from it. On this first disc, the only instrumentalists were viols, lutes and organ, and they were simply supporting the vocal parts.
Listen — Sweelinck: Te Deum Laudamus
(96928 CD1 track 5, 7:29-8:12) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
On the second disc, there are tracks on which the instrumental parts are more prominent, as for example in Psalm 42.
Listen — Sweelinck: Psalm 42
(96928 CD2 track 2, 2:48-3:40) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
This is because the writing includes a violin, cornett or a shawm and a baroque trombone, and sometimes the parts move independently of the voices. This certainly adds to the overall colour and the variety of this set of recordings.
Listen — Sweelinck: Cantate Domino
(96928 CD2 track 12, 0:00-0:48) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
The third disc opens with one of the nicest tracks on this set in my opinion - Diligam Te Domine. There is a simplicity and luminosity in this piece which, to me, speaks from an earlier time.
Listen — Sweelinck: Diligam Te Domine
(96928 CD3 track 1, 0:03-0:46) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
On the second track, Psalm 102, there are places when one can detect what appears to be a chorale. The eleventh track, Mein Junges Leben Hat Ein End, with its lengthy soprano solo before the choir enters, is also a chorale.
Listen — Sweelinck: Mein Junges Leben Hat Ein End
(96928 CD3 track 11, 0:00-1:00) ℗ 1992 NM Classics :
This is a beautifully performed set and the music is actually quite varied and interesting. Sweelinck uses a number of compositional devices and styles, but I would still recommend listening to it perhaps one disc at a time to keep it fresh.
There is a lot of music to listen to, and apart from the stellar performances by the choir, conductors and instrumentalists, to me the true heroes are the sound engineers who have recorded and mastered these discs so beautifully. I would also mention that the programme notes are extensive, especially in relation to helping the listener understand the importance of Sweelinck as a composer. His vocal music, particularly, has been somewhat neglected, and this is unfair as the music presented on these discs is certainly as good as that by any other vocal composer of the period. Enjoy.
Copyright © 12 January 2025
Geoff Pearce,
Sydney, Australia