The music of Monteverdi is revolutionary, heralding in the Baroque era. For the first time, with Monteverdi’s compositions, deep personal emotion was being heard in sacred vocal works. This collection was released after the composers death as the Messa a Quattro voci et salmi, and was composed during Monteverdi’s time serving as director of music at St. Mark’s in Venice. The Sixteen has gained critical acclaim for their previous recordings of Monteverdi’s work, including a Grammy nomination for the ensemble’s 2014 recording of Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610.

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REVIEW:

There is no shortage of first-rate music here, dispelling any notion that the Messa et Salmi only consists of pieces that Monteverdi himself did not think were worthy of preserving for posterity. The Sixteen’s performances have the group’s usual unfussy directness; the sound has no churchy over-resonance about it, either, so that the intricacies of the writing are always perfectly clear.

­– Guardian (UK)