Gallicantus

The membership of Gallicantus, comprising some of Britain’s nest consort singers, is bound byabeliefintherhetoricalpowerofgreat Renaissance music. Under the direction of Gabriel Crouch, the group creates performance projects which explore narratives and draw out unifying themes within apparently diverse repertoire. Literally meaning ‘rooster song’ or ‘cock crow’, Gallicantus was a name used in monastic antiquity for the of ce held just before dawn, which celebrated the renewal of life and offered a sense of gratitude and optimism for the coming day.

Gallicantus has performed in many signi cant venues and festivals in the UK (Wigmore Hall, Spital elds Festival, York Early Music Festival), Germany, Austria, Poland, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Estonia and Norway. In the USA the group holds regular residencies at universities such as Yale and Princeton, giving concerts and interacting with student vocalists and composers, and has recently made its debut at Carnegie Hall.

Gallicantus regularly releases benchmark programmes on CD on the Signum label, which form the basis of their concert programmes. With “Hymns, Psalms and Lamentations”, dedicated to the music of Robert White, critics acclaimed an “impressive debut” (Observer) of “impassioned, exciting music” (The Times), whilst Gramophone Magazine declared: “What an outstanding disc... The opening of the Lamentations could stand as a kind of illuminated initial at the beginning of a gorgeous manuscript, so transparent and luminous is it.” Their second recording “Dialogues of Sorrow - Passions on the Death of Prince Henry (1612)”, was described as “one of the best choral releases of the year” by TheArtsDesk.com, possessing “singing of clarity, suppleness and poignancy” (Daily Telegraph); whilst International Record Review proclaimed “... this is a well sung, intelligently produced and exhaustively researched project, which deserves great success.”

The 2012 release “The Word Unspoken”, featuring music by William Byrd and Philippe de Monte was equally well received, with The Sunday Times saying “The intensity of the music is re ected in Gallicantus’s beautifully shaped performances”. It was named ‘Editor’s Choice’

in Gramophone Magazine, which noted that “the ensemble’s view is delivered with such intelligence and rhetorical persuasiveness that the cumulative weight of their Byrd, in particular, is well-nigh symphonic in effect.” The group’s fourth CD - the remarkable Lagrime di San Pietro by Lassus, has cemented

Gallicantus as one of Europe’s foremost early music ensembles, earning a second consecutive ‘Editor’s Choice’ selection from Gramophone, as well as nomination for a coveted Gramophone Award in 2014.