Supersize Polyphony 360 - unique recording project

Aim

We want to make a unique professional recording of some breathtaking works of large-scale polyphony - all just using the power of voices.

Armonico Consort is about to embark on a tour on a massive scale. The mission - to perform great works of polyphonic music from the 16th and 17th centuries, scored for a staggering 40 to 60 independent voice parts, by the great masters Thomas Tallis and Alessandro Striggio, in "surround sound" with singers all aroundthe audience.  These works are not often performed, and also rarely recorded, because of the sheer scale of the task which confronts the musicians in bringing this extraordinary sound-world to life.   This Supersize Polyphony 360 project will include these works:

• Tallis: "Spem in alium" for 40 voices in eight choirs
• Striggio: "Ecce beatam lucem" for 40 voices
• Striggio: "Missa Ecco si beato giorno" for 60 voices

Here is a snippet of the Striggio Mass to give you an idea of just how monumental this is!  

At the end of our tour, we will record these works, but with a difference - previous recordings of the Striggio pieces in particular have replaced certain voice parts with instruments, however we will be making this new recording solely with voices, showcasing the sound of our excellent choir and the communicative power of this expressive and intelligent music.  It will be a unique document of these spectacular works, but it will be a huge undertaking.

Armonico Consort is a not-for-profit music organisation, which invests any surplus from its concert and recording activity into programmes to bring the joy of choral singing to schools across the UK.  (Check out the AC Academy pages on our website for more about these exciting programmes.) In order to make this exciting recording project happen, and to ensure that all the proceeds from it can be reinvested in our education programmes for children, we need your help!  In order to cover our costs, we need to raise £4000 - we really hope you will be a part of this unique recording project.

This project successfully funded on 26th July 2018