Troubled Times: Music and Espionage in Renaissance England explores sacred music written amid the religious and political instability of 16th-century England. Performed by The Queen's Six with The Rose Consort of Viols, the programme examines how composers navigated shifting allegiances, censorship, exile, and suspicion, from the Henrician Reformation to the Elizabethan settlement. Works by Byrd, Taverner, Morley, Philips, Ferrabosco, and others reflect strategies of adaptation, concealment, and survival, whether through recusancy, foreign travel, or service at court. Placing music within it's historical context, the recording highlights the complex relationship between faith, power, and artistic expression during a period of sustained upheaval.

The Queen’s Six release their third album on the Resonus Classics label with a scintillating and varied programme of music for Christmas. Both modern and traditional carols feature alongside a selection of lighter and contemplative evocations of the festive season. The Queen’s Six bring their trademark flair to this broad range of arrangements for men’s voices, with works from the Renaissance to the present day, including a tribute to the life of the inimitable David Willcocks - forever associated with the Christmas season - and new works by Thomas Hewitt Jones, Richard Madden & Matthew Coleridge.

Following Tom Lehrer’s decision in 2020 to release almost 100 of his songs into the public domain (for anyone to perform and adapt without permission) The Queen’s Six take up the offer with relish in this album of a cappella renditions of his “catchy and savage musical satire”. Based at Windsor Castle, the members of The Queen’s Six make up half of the Lay Clerks of St George’s Chapel, whose homes lie within the Castle walls. This rare privilege demands the highest musical standards, as they sing regularly for the Royal family at both private and state occasions. In 2018 this included the wedding of Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle, held in St George’s Chapel. Most significantly however, it is the familiarity of living and singing together in Chapel every day that lends this group its distinctive closeness and blend, as well as an irresistible informality and charm.

REVIEW:

Those who love the music of Thomas Lehrer cannot help but succumb to the charms of this disc, which is a thoroughly worthy successor to the recordings by these singers of more expected repertory. I note with pleasure that the disc acknowledges the assistance of (among others) the Trustees of Ascot Priory and the Dean and Canons of Windsor; and the cover illustration by Paul Taylor, depicting the composer in the guise of a pigeon poisoned with cyanide-laced peanuts before the façade of Windsor Castle, strikes just the right note.

-- MusicWeb International

Based at Windsor Castle, the members of The Queen’s Six make up half of the Lay Clerks of St George’s Chapel, whose homes lie within the Castle walls. This rare privilege demands the highest musical standards, as they sing regularly for the Royal family at both private and state occasions. In 2018 this included the weddings of Princess Eugenie and Mr Jack Brooksbank, and Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle, both held in St George’s Chapel. Most significantly however, it is the familiarity of living and singing together in Chapel every day that lends this group its distinctive closeness and blend, as well as an irresistible informality and charm. Individually, members of The Queen’s Six have appeared in many of the most prestigious vocal ensembles on the circuit, including The Tallis Scholars, Tenebrae, and The Sixteen. Their repertoire extends far beyond the reach of the choir stalls: from austere early chant, florid Renaissance polyphony, lewd madrigals and haunting folk songs to upbeat Jazz and Pop arrangements.

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REVIEW:

The Queen's Six do not attempt to outdo the King's Singers' famously intricate arrangements, preferring to steer things back a bit toward the middle of the road. Your reactions to this may depend on your larger ones toward the idea itself, but the execution is solid. The program consists of folk songs of the British Isles, and as the album title suggests, the Queen's Six make sure to put a generous helping of the repertory's greatest hits on the program. Other attractions include the large variety of arrangers, with just a few names repeated; the arrangements are well-chosen such that each one shows distinctive traits, but all fit together generally well.

– All Music Guide (James Manheim)

This is a musical trip from the mid-sixteenth century to around 1700, involving music in Late Renaissance style, carrying Spanish Catholicism across the Atlantic to supplant an Indigenous culture. Once the invasion had taken root with the conquest of Tenochtitlán and its transformation to Mexico City, the country became the target of fervent friars and preachers. Franciscans were first in 1523, then Dominicans, all fired with Christian zeal to convert the native population. From the outset they used music to great effect. The accounts that survive show how successful they were in teaching singing and playing, training choirs to perform liturgical music. By the mid-century it was claimed that standards had reached that of Charles V’s chapel. Churches and cathedrals were established throughout the rapidly expanding New Spain. Conquest and Christianity imposed an almost exact replica of Old Spain. Liturgical books, prints of plainchant and polyphony were shipped in throughout the century. In this recording the singers present music by eight composers. Four of them never went to the New World; their music did. Three of them were born in Spain and were trained in music there; they held appointments in Spain and later emigrated to the new colonial cities. One more became the first composer-choirmaster to be born there of Spanish parents, thus criollo.

REVIEW:

Much of the program has the dark hue and deliberate pace characteristic of the Spanish repertory, and there are some very powerful examples: try the stark, riveting motet In horrore visionis of Francisco López Capillas. There are also some brighter pieces, and although the musical universe of the Mexican cathedrals rivaled that of Spain, there is a trend toward a brighter New World simplicity evident in some of the music, and The Queen's Six makes effective use of the contrast...the singing is beautiful and expressive in an idiomatic way.

– All Music Guide (James Manheim)

The Queen's Six return to Signum with a new album of romantic pop song arrangements. Conceived with US producer TJ Armand, the album of new a cappalla arrangements sets traditional classics such as Bob Dylan’s "Make you feel my love," and Young and Heyman’s "When I fall in love," next to more unusual songs such as Huey Lewis and the News’ "The Power of Love," and Limahl’s "Never Ending Story." Based at Windsor Castle, the members of The Queen's Six make up half of the Lay Clerks of St George's Chapel, whose homes lie within the Castle walls.

The Chapel Choir, which consists of boy trebles and twelve professional adult singers, performs some eight services a week, as well as at private and state occasions, often before the Royal Family. In 2018, their duties with the Chapel Choir included singing for the wedding of Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex. In 2021, three members of the group’s voices were raised at the funeral for His Royal Highness Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh. Their repertoire extends far beyond the reach of the choir stalls: from austere early chant, florid Renaissance polyphony, lewd madrigals, and haunting folk songs, to upbeat jazz and pop arrangements.