The Wrocław Baroque Ensemble performs in an all-male lineup, referencing 16th-century performance tradition.
Composer Biography
Marcin Leopolita, a Polish Renaissance composer, was employed as a court 'compositor cantus' for King Sigismund Augustus around 1560-61.
Instruments
The recording was made in the Basilica of St Andrew the Apostle in Olkusz, Poland, which houses a historic organ from the early 17th century, the oldest and best-preserved active instrument of its type in Poland.
Composition History
Marcin Leopolita's Missa Paschalis, one of the oldest surviving full mass cycles in Polish repertoire, is based on popular Polish pseudo-Gregorian Easter hymns.
Recording & Production
This album is the first time all known compositions by Marcin Leopolita, a Polish Renaissance composer, have been collected and recorded.
Compositional Technique
Marcin Leopolita's Missa Paschalis uses a dense five-part texture, extended to six parts in the Agnus Dei, combining imitation technique with free polyphony and hymn melodies as cantus firmus.
Historical Context
Lviv, where Marcin Leopolita was born and returned to, was a significant musical center at the crossroads of various cultures and religions during his lifetime.
