Abitz de doeul offers a musical journey through the culture of mourning and spiritual meditation in vocal music from the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, in which text and sound become vehicles for the intense expression of human suffering, penitence and transcendence. Performed by Ensemble O Vos Omnes, the programme brings together works by great masters of the Renaissance and Early Baroque who explored the expressive possibilities of polyphony and chromaticism as rhetorical tools. Highlights include Orlando di Lasso’s Psalmi poenitentiales, conceived for restricted use at the Bavarian court, as well as motets in which the composer deploys a chromatic language of extraordinary emotional intensity.
The programme is completed by works by Giaches de Wert, William Byrd and Hans Leo Hassler, showcasing the expressive richness of sacred music of the period, before reaching the stylistic radicalism of Carlo Gesualdo, whose chromaticism and harmonic tension opened entirely new expressive pathways. The result is a sonic journey that reflects how, by the end of the sixteenth century, sacred music had become a space of experimentation and emotional depth, capable of transcending liturgical boundaries and anticipating new musical languages.
Ensemble O Vos Omnes was founded in 2011 by conductor and composer Xavier Pastrana. With extensive experience in choral music and a broad classical music background, Pastrana quickly established the ensemble as one of Catalonia’s most promising vocal groups specialising in early music.
The ensemble’s projects seek to demonstrate the ability of early music to engage in dialogue with contemporary society. Through the recovery, contextualisation and creation of new repertoire and formats, the group offers performances that have been praised by specialist critics, both in large-scale works and in more intimate programmes. Their interpretations of contemporary music have also attracted attention and recognition from renowned composers such as Bernat Vivancos and Joan Magrané. Their combination of technical precision, distinctive sound and exceptional musicality has made Ensemble O Vos Omnes a unique ensemble within its field.
Clara Brunet, soprano
Eulàlia Fantova, mezzo-soprano
Mercè Bruguera, contralto
Ferran Mitjans, tenor
Martí Doñate, tenor
Tomàs Maxé, bass
Xavier Pastrana, baritone and conductor
Orlando di Lassus
Tu es refugium (dels Psalmis poenitentialis)
Concupiscendo concupiscit anima mea
Ad dominum cum tribularer
Carmina Chromatico
Vide homo (de Lagrime di San Pietro)
Jacob Handl
Mirabile mysterium
Adrianus Petit Coclico
Non derelinquet
William Byrd
Vide domine, prima pars
Giaques de Wert
Vox in rama
Amen, amen dico vobis
Hans Leo Hassler
Ad Dominum
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck
De profundis
Vicente Lusitano
Heu me Domine
Carlo Gesualdo
Tribulationem meam
O Vos Omnes
