The Call of Rome

Harry Christophers and his classy choir The Sixteen answer The Call of Rome with a programme of polyphony also performed on their 2020 Choral Pilgrimage tour of the UK. Each of the four composers here—Victoria (from Spain), Des Prez (from France), Anerio, and Allegri—created some of his finest music while visiting or living in The Eternal City. Inspired by this centre of pilgrimage and its spiritual power, the music here is magnificent, firmly grounded in strong faith and expressed with intensity, but often with great simplicity. The programme builds toward one of the best-known of all Roman compositions, Allegri’s glorious Miserere—sung here with breathtaking control.