Josquin Desprez: The Renaissance Master

This is a reissue release, collecting selections from the Harmonia Mundi label's catalog of the music of Josquin Desprez in three volumes. Reissues generally choose the cheapest solution for graphics and presentation, but this one (although the price is nice) is sumptuous, with a hardback book containing well-produced images and full texts. The difference from other reissues is easy to understand; although Josquin is, as the title says, the undisputed Renaissance master, he's much less well known than any number of visual artists, and that's because it's hard for ordinary listeners to get a grip on some of his procedures. Thus an overview of his career, like the present release, is valuable. The notes outline the various genres in which Josquin worked, and a listener coming to the music with little prior knowledge would get something out of it. Josquin Desprez: The Renaissance Master is also of interest to those who already know and love Josquin, for it offers distinctively different ways of performing his music in a handy single package. Groups included are Paul Hillier's Theatre of Voices, Philippe Herreweghe's La Chapelle Royale, Daniel Reuss' Cappella Amsterdam, Paul Van Nevel's Huelgas Ensemble, and Dominique Visse's Ensemble Clément Janequin joined in the Missa Pange Lingua (performed with intervening chants) by the Ensemble Organum. Consider the contrast between Huelgas Ensemble's ethereal Qui habitat and the Ensemble Clément Janequin's much gutsier sound. This release can be enthusiastically recommended to anyone from Josquin newcomers to those with large Josquin collections already.