Praetorius: Magnificat

German composer Michael Praetorius, whose life bridged the 16th and 17th centuries, was one of his era's most prolific writers, both of musical works and of works about music. His "Syntagma Musicum" remains one of the most important treatises on instruments and performance practice; he composed many volumes of Protestant hymn-based works, motets, psalms, works for multiple choir, and Latin music for the Lutheran service. The "Magnificat" performed on this program is one of 14 that Praetorius included in his Megalynodia Sionia, published in 1611. Its polyphonic style and rich instrumental writing--particularly for brass--is occasionally reminiscent of Gabrieli, whose works Praetorius studied; or Schutz, with whom he traveled throughout Germany. The Huelgas Ensemble, "one of Europe's best-known groups specializing in performance of polyphonic music of the Middle Ages and Renaissance," gives an exemplary account of this little-known but prodigiously deserving music. --David Vernier