England's devoted followers of time-honoured Roman Catholic rituals were forced into the shadows by evangelical Protestants in the wake of Henry VIII's Reformation. Musicians wedded to the old faith found ways to praise God with settings of ancient liturgical texts, helped by Elizabeth I's strong personal affection for the Latin language and her religious conservatism. The vibrant young voices of Siglo de Oro chart the era's confessional changes and continuities with a programme of sublime polyphony by three composers whose collective work spans a century of religious revolution.

Programme:

Thomas Tallis E'en like the hunted hind
Te lucis ante terminum
William Byrd Peccantem me quotidie
Thomas Tallis Videte miraculum
William Byrd Laudate, pueri, Dominum
Thomas Tallis O Sacrum convivium
O come in one
Suscipe quaeso
Why fum'th in fight
William Byrd Miserere mihi, Domine
Thomas Tallis Salvator mundi
William Byrd Emendemus in melius
Thomas Tallis Miserere nostri
Robert Parsons Ave Maria
William Byrd Ye sacred muses
Thomas Tallis God Grant With Grace
William Byrd Tribue, Domine

Performers:

Siglo de Oro
Patrick Allies director