Magnificat - Rogier: Missae Sex - Gramophone

I’m not sure what inspired Magnificat’s director, Philip Cave, to fly the flag for Philippe Rogier but this recording vindicates his decision to do so. It’s the third disc he’s devoted to him and, while the double-choir repertory of the previous volume was disappointing, this new instalment returns both composer and ensemble to something like the form of the first, which included the very impressive Mass Ego sum qui sum.

Rogier’s choice of models for the Masses recorded here is evocative in itself, the one a fine motet by Clemens non Papa, the second a tune derived from the syllables of the name of Rogier’s royal patron and namesake, Philip II of Spain. There are audible nods here especially to the work that got this tradition started, the Hercules Dux Ferrariae Mass of Josquin, and the sense of celebratory opulence is enhanced by His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts and a continuo section that includes dulcian, harp and organ. The Mass Inclita stirps Jesse, meanwhile, is done a cappella, with female altos on the top line (difficult to mistake Caroline Trevor’s distinctive tone). It’s an impressive piece in a sound reading, though the tempi can seem a touch slow, with consequences for the sense of forward motion: in the second part of Clemens’s motet, the pulse audibly slows, and in the Benedictus of the Mass, so does the pitch. That said, the accompanying pieces, dispatched by the instrumentalists add a further dimension to a fine recital.