Cantus Christi Selections in Recordings

Those unfamiliar with many of the selections in the Cantus Christi hymnal would be helped by acquiring some recordings of the psalms and hymns in the book. Below is a basic list of recordings. Over the coming months (and years) I hope to include some commentary on the common selections with the Cantus. Links to the recordings on Amazon.com are included. Some of these can be downloaded directly from there. The Cantus numbers listed be low are page numbers.

1. Tallis, Archbishop Parker's Psalter Selections, Cantus Christi nos. 92, 93, 218, 372, & 377

2. Tallis, Dorian Service Selections, Cantus Christi nos. 126, 386, 392, 393, 396, 398, 406, 410, 413, 416, 420, 425, 426, & 430

Comment: This recording is a download and includes the selections from Archbishops Parker's Psalter listed under #1. Both recordings are very fine although the Tallis Scholars are especially fantastic.

3. Vaughn Williams, Hymns, Cantus Christi nos. 31, 66 (100), 154 (206), 214, 272 (288), 278, 280, 294, 301, 369, & 378

Not all the tunes listed are Vaughn Williams own arrangements. Vaughn Williams arranged a whole variety of sturdy and memorable tunes for the English Hymnal of 1906.

4. Scottish Psalter Selections, Cantus Christi nos. 38, 78, 84, 105, 134, 139, 144, 159, 162, 167, 193, 298, & 360

It appears that copies are only available from independent sellers. This is a nice disc. I hope its availability doesn't disappear.

5. Anglo-American Psalmody, Cantus Christi nos. 160, 266, 370, 382

This popular album, originally released under the title 'Goostly Psalms' hardly needs mention. There is some fun and unusual music on it. The first eight or so tracks are fantastic.

6. Genevan Psalms, Cantus Christi nos. 15, 36, 58, 72, 178.

The performances on this CD are all first rate. The Cantus numbers noted above are found in homophonic settings on the CD with the melody in the tenor. There are polyphonic settings on the CD of other Cantus selections but the tunes are harder to hear as they have been elaborated upon in such settings.

7. More Genevan Psalms, Cantus Christi nos. 15, 42, 58, 168, 178, 425

This CD I recommend with reservations. The arrangements of the psalms are interesting in that they feature Goudimel's several styles of psalm settings including monophonic, homophonic, and polyphonic. The listener gets a good idea of the breadth of Genevan psalm styles. But the performances themselves aren't great making this CD non-easy listening.

8. Lutheran Music, Cantus Christi nos. 208, 225, 231, 232, 404, 408

This CD is another interesting study in Reformation music particularly because it pits the rich polyphonic music of the conservatives Luther and Walter against the simple music of the radical, Thomas Muentzer. Walter's polyphony is thick and being that the hymn tune is in the tenor voice most of the pieces won't sound recognizable. Nevertheless, this is a CD worth having, if for no other reason than blasting on Reformation Sunday.