Jan Garbarek
The Hilliard Ensemble
Officium

Recorded: September 1993
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Ecm Records
ASIN: B0000031YD
ECM New Series 1525

Jan Garbarek - soprano, tenor saxophones
David James - countertenor
Rogers Covey-Crump - tenor
John Potter - tenor
Gordon Jones - baritone
 
1. Parce mihi domine
2. Primo tempore
3. Sanctus
4. Regnantem sempiterna
5. O salutaris hostia
6. Procedentem sponsum
7. Pulcherrima rosa
8. Parce mihi domine
9. Beata viscera
10. De spineto nata rosa
11. Credo
12. Ave maris stella
13. Virgo flagellatur
14. Oratio leremiae
15. Parce mihi domine

"What is this music?" Fundamentally, it's an exploration of what happens when an improvisatory instrumental voice (saxophone) is placed into the world of early vocal music, which has elements of both improvisation and formal structure. In reality, it's an adventure in which the four male voices of the Hilliard Ensemble travel the 14th- and 15th-century territory of Morales and Dufay, visit the 12th century of Perotin, and roam even earlier ages of plainchant, accompanied by the always sensitive and tasteful, often astonishing, saxophone improvisations of jazz master Jan Garbarek. Sometimes, these new melodies simply accompany; sometimes they transform the common--a routine minor chord, for instance--into a sublime, indescribable moment. The answer to the above question is easy, but it's different for each listener." -- David Vernier/Editorial Reviews at Amazon.com