Gothic Voices - Hildegard Von Bingen: A Feather On The Breath Of God (1982)

More music by 12th century abbess and polymath Hildegard Von Bingen (in this case the British record label anglicized her name, but I'm keeping the 'Von' just for consistency's sake) in a sublime, early full-digital recording that helped put the fledgling Hyperion Records on the map.  

 

The Gothic Voices ensemble are never featured en masse, but instead the album picks out small groups and soloists in a nice varied running order.  A few tracks also have underpinning drones, either from reeds or a symphony (an early hurdy-gurdy).  All of it presents Von Bingen's haunting compositions in gorgeous clarity, the album going on to win a Gramophone Award and firmly establishing Von Bingen in the public consciousness.

link

pw: sgtg

Previously posted at SGTG: Antiphona