Review

Tomas Luis de Vittoria
Ave Maria:

Arranged by Karl Hinterbichler


Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2007
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Score and parts

Primary Genre: Trombone Ensembles - 8 trombones

Tomas Luis de Vittoria (1548-1611) was perhaps the greatest Spanish composer of the Renaissance. After completing choral training in Avila, Spain, Vittoria spent much of his career in Rome teaching at the Collegium Germanicum before returning to Spain to serve as chaplain and organist at a monastery in Madrid.  Vittoria produced no secular music and his writing is known for its openness, compassion, warmth and depth much like the music of his colleague at the Collegium, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. This setting, originally for eight male voices, is scored for two separate quartets (3 tenors, 1 bass). The top three parts are written in tenor clef and the bass trombone part can be negotiated on large bore tenor if necessary. Balance and blend will be a challenge as the quartets overlap on all but two releases and the similar tessitura of each choir will put a premium on stylistic and timbral consistency. Parts are notated clearly, but the paucity of nuance markings will leave room for a variety of interpretations. While a typical college ensemble can perform this transcription without difficulty, in the hands of an advanced group it could be striking!      

-Mark E. Britt
Furman University