Orlande de Lassus (Orlando di Lasso): St. Matthew Passion – Ex Cathedra Consort & Jeffrey Skidmore

Lassus’ St. Matthew Passion is a masterpiece of the late Renaissance.

This exciting new release celebrates conductor Jeffrey Skidmore’s 60th birthday. Ex Cathedra has done sterling work in bringing neglected masterpieces to life.

Reviews

BBC Music Magazine August 2011

“Nicholas Mulroy does a magnificent job, showing fluent command of the Latin text and the harrowing, unfolding story…The three motets at the end show more clearly the experience and ability of Ex Cathedra, and thus provide a more obvious tribute to the many achievements of its director over the years. – 4 out of 5 stars

International Record Review

“When the choruses depicting the dramatic moments of the Passion of Christ are placed in context, and the chant sung with the exemplary sensitivity it is here, the music comes truly alive…. positively dazzling…. To this outstanding rendition of the Passion are added three motets, rounded off by the famous paean to music Musica Dei donum, whose text (‘Music, gift of God’) surely says what the performers on this collection must have been thinking as they sang

Birmingham Post

“Nicholas Mulroy turns in an astonishing tour de force as the Evangelist… Greg Skidmore is the dignified Christus, and the Consort sings sonorously in the crowd’s block textures. Jeffrey Skidmore shapes the tension unerringly, and Lassus’ Ave Verum Corpus which follows comes as a soothing release.

Classical Review

“The mixed voices of the Ex Cathedra are superbly marshaled by Jeffrey Skidmore, delivering well-proportioned performances of quiet majesty that ride the emotional and rhythmic ebb and flow of Lassus’s music with almost liquescent ease… In all, a glorious disc of soft-toned, sober-hued music performed with consummate skill and a stirring sense of devotional intensity