Resonating across more than five centuries, expressions of personal piety and prayer fill these works by a quartet of Franco-Flemish composers, all born in the 15th century, and two modern-day colleagues, Cyrillus Kreek and Andrew Smith. For those familiar with the vocal ensemble New York Polyphony, this exploration of the intersection of ancient and modern music is far from surprising. The program is organized around texts appropriate for Passiontide, the last two weeks of the Lenten season in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, including the world premiere recording Loyset Compère’s (c. 1445 – 1518) Officium de Cruce, an elaborate, multi-movement motet cycle.
New York Polyphony: And the sun darkened
