With his compositions Johannes Ockeghem (c. 1420-1497) had a major influence on the music of the fifteenth century. For example it may have been Ockegham, who founded the long tradition of the artistic compositions of the chanson L’homme arme. In addition to his famous mass for four voices, the German-Belgian ensemble Beauty Farm also interprets the Missa quinti toni for three voices. Beauty Farm specializes in the interpretation of works from the early Renaissance. Their recordings have been described as “extraordinarily sensitive.” Beauty Farm is made up of members of top international ensembles such as La Capilla Flamenca, Huelgas Ensemble, Vox Luminis, Collegium Vocale Gent, and Cinquecento. The ensemble recently won first prize at the international competition for early music ensembles at the Landshuter Hofmusiktage.

Beauty Farm is a 2014 founded vocal group focused on the Franco-Flemish polyphony of the renaissance. The international ensemble is based in the Carthusian Monastery at Mauerbach (Austria). The singers are members of well known ensembles like Capilla flamenca, Huelgas Ensemble, Vox Luminis, Collegium Vocale Gent and Graindelavoix. On this extensive release, the ever-acclaimed vocal quartet presents four masses of Pierre de la Rue, all composed during the composer's last creative period. Pierre de la Rue is one of the most fascinating and yet most elusive members of the talented generation of composers from around 1500. On the works recorded here he demonstrates his complete polyphonic skills and thus gives the melancholy an intellectual, complex nuance. The necessary lightness is provided by the voices of Bart Uvyn, Hans Jörg Mammel, Hannes Wagner and Joachim Höchbauer.

Nicolas Gombert’s compositions, all vocal, are for ensembles of up to twelve parts. • His contrapuntal language is based on that of Josquin, but increasingly complex. • Imitation is used even more consistently than did Josquin, and Gombert’s vocal textures are often densely packed, with individual lines characterized by an avoidance of rests. • A substantial number of his compositions survive, including ten masses, over 160 motets, 60 secular chansons, and a set of eight Magnificats (one in each mode). • The motets on this recording, for 4–6 voices, offer fine representations of Gombert’s musical style.

The music of the Renaissance appears to reflect little of the dangers, horrors and violent conflicts of its time. Music written during the Hundred Years War or the French invasion of Italy gives hardly any impression to today’s ears of the precariousness of existence of which its composers, singers and listeners must have continually been aware. Nor do the two masses by Jacob Obrecht (1457/8 – 1505) on this recording betray anything of the restless spirit of the age, despite them both being based on models referring to suffering and misery. Founded by Markus Muntean and Bernhard Trebuch- out of passion for vocal polyphony and a kind of despair about the break in the interpretation of this music which took place in the 1980s- beauty farm gathers young singers, leaving traditions behind, willing to experiment and exploring new musical territory.

For a long time, Johannes Ockeghem (ca. 1420-1497) was one of the most famous Unknown Persons in music history. There is no doubt about his position as the most important representative of the second generation of Franco-Flemish composers. But what its effect actually was and how its artistic development can be described, there was a long lack of clarity about it, which has only been somewhat cleared up in recent decades thanks to intensive research and discographic exploration. The FRA BERNARDO recording of the Masses with the vocal ensemble Beauty Farm is undoubtedly an impressive way of illustrating the significance of Ockeghem.

The vocal ensemble Beauty Farm was founded in 2014 and is made up of members of top international ensembles such as the Huelgas Ensemble, Vox Luminis, Collegium Vocale Gent or Graindelavoix. The singers do not intend a homogeneous beautiful sound in their interpretations, but a colorful sound rather through characteristic drawing of the individual voices. Their second album is also dedicated to motets by Nicolas Gombert, a grand master of the Franco-Flemish polyphony. They have selected seventeen of his masterpieces, some of which are receiving their first recording here. Hermann Finck described this music perfectly in 1556 when he said “He avoids pauses, and his work is rich with full harmonies and imitative counterpoint.”

Mid-16th century: Catholic Church music is threatened by a pandemic. All too worldly, artificial things had crept into sacred chanting to such an extent that the famous Council of Trent even wanted to reduce singing in the mass to the monophonic Gregorian chant again. As the Fama tells us, Palestrina saved polyphonic church music from this crisis with his Missa Papae Marcelli. In a live recording, beauty farm sings this legendary work, which raises complex questions of interpretation and juxtaposes the mass with well- known hymns in the chorale. frabernardo dedicates the album to Bruno Turner, who once set standards in early music with the ensemble Pro Cantione Antiqua, for his 90th birthday.

Beauty farm founded 2014 by Markus Muntean and Bernhard Trebuch is a vocal group focused to the Franco-Flemish polyphony of the renaissance. The international ensemble is based in the Carthusian monastery at Mauerbach (Austria). The singers are members of well known ensembles like "Capilla flamenca", "Huelgas Ensemble", "Vox Luminis", "Collegium Vocale Gent" and "Graindelavoix". Beauty Farm exclusively records for frabernardo.

How can one approach the interpretation, a reading and an analysis of a complex music that was not read in score in it's time? Printed in partbooks, written or handed down in folios in individual parts, everything must be thrown overboard when "reading", singing, listening, which at least in the past centuries has become traditional in the idea of "choral music", indeed in the reading of music in general. Flying blind, as it were - without exact knowledge of the course of the other voices - each singer once floated horizontally through the music. "beauty farm" embarks on an exploratory journey into this now alien world of Renaissance polyphony. The ensemble has recorded 19 motets by Nicolas Gombert according to new critical editions. Of course, some of them are world premiere recordings.

We know little about Pierre de Manchicourt's biography and recordings of his music are rare. "Beauty Farm" takes up the cudgels for this Franco-Flemish master of the Renaissance, who is probably only known to insiders. The album "Manchicourt - Masses" sheds a representative light on the sacred music of the composer, who worked as Kapellmeister to Philip II in Madrid in the last years of his life. Four masses - including the first recording of the "Missa De Domina" - show that Manchicourt was one of the grand masters of vocal polyphony.