Professional Singer Reacts to Allegri's Miserere

Рет қаралды 56,149

Жыл бұрын

Tenebrae Choir performs Allegri's Miserere
Allegri's Miserere is one of the most famous choral pieces in the choral music canon. The legendary high C, the stunning polyphony, and the beautiful cathedrals in which its performed. In this video, I share my thoughts on Allegri's masterpiece, and even discuss the rumour and mystique surrounding W.A. Mozart
Thank you SO MUCH to the Tenebrae Choir for their stunning performance!
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Link to original video: • Miserere mei, Deus - A...
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Пікірлер: 353

@thetenebraechoir 29 күн бұрын

Thank you for this lovely video and review - we are so happy to hear your thoughts!

@jl8138 22 күн бұрын

Nick should react to "Os justi" next!

@theLASK 16 күн бұрын

Wow, did not expect you to be here

@AllComposersbyNumbers Жыл бұрын

You're completely right, the story of Mozart's incredible transcription has been fiddled with over the years, but the main part of it is true. In letters from Leopold, his father, to his wife in Salzburg, he states that "Wolfgang managed to write down the work in its entirety on the Friday, then returned to make corrections on the Sunday". It happened when Wolfgang and his father were in Rome, and just so happened to be there during Holy Week. At the time, there were only three copies of the work, one in the Netherlands, one in England and the other in Italy, belonging to Italian composer and scholar Giovanni Battista "Padre" Martini. Also something that proves this point is that, after word got out, the Pope conferred upon Mozart the Order of the Golden Spur, which had only been awarded to one other composer: Christoph Willibald Gluck. Mozart then became a Knight, and signed all his manuscripts with "Cavaliere Wolf. Amadeo Mozart". Also, in the 19th century, German composer Felix Mendelssohn edited the work and added in the most famous aspect: the high C. This was never in Allegri's original manuscript, and has only been used since the 1890s, so some of the work isn't intact.

@keithhulks7049 Жыл бұрын

I was introduced to this piece 40 years ago and it blew my mind. I had never before heard anything so beautiful.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Couldn’t agree more. It’s by far one of my favourite pieces 😍🎉

@user-ti2xy9fv6z 6 ай бұрын

I was in my early 20s , loved all sorts of music, punk, new romantic etc etc. And then I heard this, I honestly have to try not to cry, the beauty of the human voice

@angelchavez4997 Жыл бұрын

I sang the alto part in the four-part choir. This piece is a must for anyone who considers itself a singer. My recommendation is find yourself a choir that's all up to accept the challenge and do it.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Well said! It’s not an easy undertaking but sooooo worth it!

@Vanilthas59 5 ай бұрын

For those who read my comment, he is the teacher and director that showed me the song. Best regards

@johnbradbury4000 Жыл бұрын

These singers perform it in such a way the one can actually hear and understand the words

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Yes it’s so beautifully done!

@horaciopinto7494 Жыл бұрын

For me it’s the most formidable piece of music ever written. If there’s Heaven, I think this could be very close to It. This choir is my favourite at performing this sublime piece. I’d like to thank this young musician for analysing and explaining it so beautifully.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much!

@carolhayes7750 Жыл бұрын

I've been lucky enough to listen to this live twice. Once in church on Ash Wednesday and the other at a concert with the New College Choir from Oxford. The voices of those young Trebles were absolutely out of this world.

@isaiahbaggett5014 Жыл бұрын

amazing piece and stellar choir - This group is PHENOMENAL. One of the basses used to be a member of the renowned King's Singers group. They are arguably one of the best period a capella groups in the world.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I completely agree! They are a stunning ensemble

@chong2389 Жыл бұрын

What a geek! Very respectfully from one geek to another. This is, without doubt, the best performance I have ever heard. Excellent reaction.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Hahah thank you! I love this music and am so excited to share my thoughts on it!

@OUVIR.INGLES Жыл бұрын

I have been listening to this version several times, it is just amazing and angelical, the scenary, the voices, Tenebrae Choir made the best version of that masterpiece I've heard.

@MSScout86 Жыл бұрын

The Tenebrae Choir's rendition is my absolute favorite.

@st.bernadetteparish2540 Жыл бұрын

I first encountered the Allegri at a celebration of Tenebrae -- that is to say, in the evening, in a church with subdued lighting ("Tenebrae" means "darkness," and the Tenebrae liturgy entails gradually extinguishing the candles in the church), and with the scent of incense in the air -- with the choir arrayed antiphonally, so you got the spatial separation in the midst of all that atmosphere, and sung by excellent singers. Talk about a transcendent moment!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Wow what an experience! This music is only elevated when you perform them at special venues, for special occasions. Thank you for sharing!

@simaadelifar4511 Жыл бұрын

I love seeing your reactions to classical pieces like this! Keep 'em coming!😍

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Will do, Sima! Hope all is well with you - keep on singing 🎉

@grahaml6668 Жыл бұрын

I too have been entranced by this work for 40 years. With or without the high notes. With or without the mythology attached to it. It's in my opinion the finest choral work ever written, and your video commentary here is spot on. Well done!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

That’s true, when you take away the mystique of it, you’re life with an utterly stunning piece of music!

@madelinekoch607 Жыл бұрын

I sang this with my choir a few years ago and I absolutely love this piece!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

It’s one of the best!

@singingcat02 6 ай бұрын

I sang this with my high school choir in a cathedral, for a messa. The small choir sopranos 1 and 2 both had incredible voices, the high C was stunning, and it was so beautiful I wondered how I even happened to be part of a choir that could do something so amazing and sound so majestic.

@elaineduncanson1474 Жыл бұрын

I have sung it a number of times. It was always for Tenebrae on Wednesday evening in Christ Church Cathedral in Fredericton New Brunswick. I agree that is an astoundingly beautiful piece.

@simaadelifar4511 Жыл бұрын

The last part was really beyond this world. My soul just left my body.

@SirenaWomanWarrior 4 ай бұрын

I even just learned that Allegri actually was inspired by an earlier composition of Miserere (Festa). It's crazy how the high C wasn't even originally there. So beautiful.

@lefthandedclogger Жыл бұрын

I got to sing this piece last year with a choir, and I sang Soprano - luckily not the one with the high C and all the pressure! The one who sang it was very capable and did a wonderful job. But it’s a stunning piece and will always be a favorite of mine, and has become quite close to my heart. Psalm 51 also is much more precious to me after having sung this piece. Something about truly sacred music to sacred text never leaves a person. I also really love the recording by Clare college and highly recommend it if you haven’t heard that one!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thank you for your comment! So glad you got to experience this piece 🙂

@FromG2eminor Жыл бұрын

I've seen this video many times for several years. Such perfection!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

It’s beautoful

@tonygianni3803 Жыл бұрын

Proud to be Catholic Christian. 😌

@davidtrevino8202 10 ай бұрын

🤨

@Krissws 9 ай бұрын

The music has no religión

@MrCrunch808 8 ай бұрын

@@Krissws it technically does, but it doesn’t matter cause nobody understands the lyrics anyways.

@The_Amazing_King_Orion_YT 8 ай бұрын

We're not proud we're blessed to be catholic

@ryanmurphy7355 6 ай бұрын

@@Larbitoso_owe don’t listen to false prophets..when u are ready lord is waiting.

@Stephen8601 Жыл бұрын

I really loved your commentary/reaction to this piece of music. Of all the reaction videos I've seen by voice coaches and musicians, you're the only one Ive heard that seems to know what you're talking about. Seriously! No Joke. When you are describing what is happening, I get the feeling of being drawn into the "action" of what is taking place there. Good job mate, and keep it up.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much, Stephen! It’s really fun for me to record these - I have a lot of thought these great pieces, and I love analyzing them and learning more ❤️🎉

@countertony Жыл бұрын

I used to sing this each Ash Wednesday as part of a university chapel choir which will remain nameless to protect the innocent - one year, the tenor soloist didn't show at all before the service, and the conductor filled in until he rocked up halfway through. I don't recall ever seeing that singer again.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Oh noooo! 😂 Yeah I can imagine they got sacked after missing such an important moment

@MrDominicharrison Жыл бұрын

Always loved that Tenebrae choir video, never knew where it was performed! In my home town of all places! 🙏🏼

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

So cool!

@Graceking76 Жыл бұрын

Watching this was like a door opening for me. I’ve never even thought about what goes into this kind of singing before. I was too busy enjoying it, I suppose. Thank you so much for the perspective, it actually kind of blew my mind!

@PWOL35 Жыл бұрын

I listen to it everyday and hope we will sing this piece one day with my Choir. Cheers from France !

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thank you! Cheers from Canada 😁

@kissedbyhellfire Жыл бұрын

Such a beautiful rendition

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Tenebrae is a fantastic group!

@glmcreationsfilm Жыл бұрын

One of the greatest compositions ever

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Absolutely ! 💯

@dustinneitch5630 Жыл бұрын

I love your videos and everything is awesome!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much Dustin!

@wolfwingenfeld5200 Ай бұрын

Nice introduction into this marvellous piece.

@nickhiggsthesinger Ай бұрын

Many thanks!

@jess6011 Жыл бұрын

Almost 16 minutes of goose bumps. Thank you for your input🙏

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

My pleasure! Thank you for watching

@aag24 7 ай бұрын

As a mere "civilian" I just wanted to say how much I appreciate your videos. Thank you very much sir! (I really wish I could sing … I stopped after school and miss it!)

@nickhiggsthesinger 7 ай бұрын

Thank you so much ♥️ Your support means the world and I hope you know how much your super like means to me!!!♥️

@aag24 7 ай бұрын

@@nickhiggsthesinger You're very welcome. I hope we see more of you - you are extremely talented and personable. 🤞👍

@miladbozorgnia3571 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for your awesome analysis Nick. I would love to know what happens in your mind and spirit, before you’re getting ready to sing it, during and after the very last note. It’s so impressively we’ll written for it’s time, it blows me away. What knowledge of acoustics and synchronicity. TY Nick!🙏🏼

@ujujessica9989 Жыл бұрын

I've always wanted to sing this piece 😭😭 But our choir can't take the challenge, it's such an extraordinary piece. I'm just obsessed with this song 😍

@chicketychina8447 4 ай бұрын

If you all sing to God and not to he congregation everything will work

@ujujessica9989 4 ай бұрын

@@chicketychina8447 But do not forget that we're not just there to sing for God but to also touch souls. Humans and God will not respond in the same way, if you sing not so good, God won't be bothered, as long as you're praising him, that would be enough for him. But for humans, if you're trying to touch people's souls with music and pass a message, if it's not presented well, it would sound like noise to them instead ))

@bernadettewilkie5996 9 ай бұрын

Guys do you remember listening to this when no one did "reaction videos"? I really am happy people are analyzing this because it tells me that people are interested in it. Its such a wonderful piece.

@nickhiggsthesinger 9 ай бұрын

It is so great

@m44p25 Жыл бұрын

Beautiful piece! Great Video!!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much! Stay tuned for more

@m44p25 Жыл бұрын

@@nickhiggsthesinger great! I’m more on the instrumental side of “classical” music, but I’m always excited to discover new choral works!

@mrghostly1118 Жыл бұрын

Just learned hundred new things about singing, thanks 🙏

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Amazing!

@DavidLee-yu7yz Ай бұрын

Absolutely Superb and I one of my favourites since I heard this almost forty years ago

@shadoxir Жыл бұрын

Technical prowess needed to nail this piece aside, above all, the feeling it evokes is truly what makes it the greatest piece ever.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Absolutely correct!

@anselmjacobsmith639 Жыл бұрын

Have you listened to James MacMillan’s Miserere? His setting of the text takes Allegri’s and builds on it in the way on a Scottish Catholic could. Imho, it even surpasses Allegri’s.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I have not! I will check it out for sure. Thank you for the suggestion!

@barendtobe6059 Жыл бұрын

Well thank you for this video.Well done!! Music that brings me to tears! Thank you for your information! Greetings from Utrecht, the Netherlands.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

You’re most welcome. One of my favourites, for sure. Stay tuned for more analysis!

@horaciopinto7494 4 ай бұрын

This young man makes me very attentive to his explanation; his knowledge is so profound that makes me hanging for every word he says. For me, this is the most celestial piece of music ever written. My God, it’s so good to be Catholic.

@Libradimple Жыл бұрын

It's the most insane and incredible piece I've ever sung... there's a lot of beautiful music and I've sung a lot of it, but this was the most beautiful piece for me... there's such a feeling in singing it...

@exaltedmasculine Жыл бұрын

This is the most transcendental & haunting piece of music I have ever heard. It's feels like the holy love of God piercing straight through the heart.

@rykehuss3435 Жыл бұрын

Hard to argue with that, and I'm a Bach enjoyer first and foremost

@olivermackenzie9271 7 ай бұрын

I was able to hear this in the cathedral in Wellington new Zealand... just superb. Goosebumps and constant anticipation for the high c.

@cepsluvr Жыл бұрын

Could that young musical genius Mozart have transcribed this piece on one listen? Absolutely. There are actually only three musical thoughts in the whole thing, repeated over and over again with different words. The five-part choir sings one, which is fairly straightforward; then the chant, which any musician of that time could have sung in his or her sleep; finally the descant choir, with the high C (probably not written by Allegri, but who cares?).

@mirabilos 10 ай бұрын

The way I heard the Mozart story was he had a listen, transcribed it, then went to a repeat performance to verify his transcription and fixup anything that needed it. And yes, people are somewhat convinced that the high part is transcribed too high somewhere along the way… but I guess it’s there to stay with us now. Only sad I can only get up to A₅ but that’s fine for a Ct I guess :D

@Secret_Agent_Mark Жыл бұрын

Not surprised the basses sounded good. In this case, they had a very VERY good bass amongst the singers. Stephen Parham-Connolly (with ringbeard or whatever it is called in English), former bass with the King's Singers, joined the choir for this recording. Of course they all sound amazing, even when Stephen isn't participating. But his voice brings an instant recognisable colour to the sound. Fun fact: Nigel Short is a former King's Singers too, as countertenor. He and Stephen were colleagues.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Wow thanks for that! I didn’t know :)

@thefiendboy4751 4 ай бұрын

I was a 23 year old career drug dealer when I first heard this. It was so beautiful. It was the first time I cried(or felt anything) in years. I'm new to God and don't want to speak out of place, but this song introduced me to God's love and helped change my life, start a career, and focus on the Lord. I do not want to come off as evangelical, however; I've seen what the world has(money, ferraris, lambos, presidential suites in Miami, running around with 2 Chainz off duty bodyguards, $1000 "escorts" offering themselves to me cause i was the man, ect...). I've seen a lot of "wordly" things, and none of it, none, compares to the beauty and love of our Lord Jesus. God could literally start fresh whenever, but He loves us, and is giving each of us individually every chance HE can to use our own free will and repent.

@reecewood1918 Ай бұрын

Welcome home friend. This is my favorite song and I'm sure it resonates with you for the same reason it resonates with me. It is a prayer for forgiveness.

@vewilli 3 ай бұрын

God speaks out of this incredible piece of music! 👏🏻👍🏻🙏🏻

@voxveritatis3815 Жыл бұрын

As a matter of fact, Mozart memorized the whole piece. Moreover, he retained all the notes in his mind until late that night, when he finally had a chance to transcribe it. When he showed the transcription to his father, Leopold Mozart, the astounded man almost flipped. Firstly due to the prowess. Secondly, due to it was strictly forbidden. So, What did Leopold do? He went straight to the Vatican and told the truth. Far from punishing young Mozart, the Pope received him, and praised him as a "miracle of God". Mozart's fame skyrocketed throughout Europe ever since.

@FireDragonArmy2 Жыл бұрын

Mozart. The world’s first music pirate. Dude was the original OG.

@voxveritatis3815 Жыл бұрын

@@FireDragonArmy2 And you are the world's biggest disappointment, folk. The term piracy only applies when the property taken is proclaimed as your own. Mozart evidently never intended such an act. Secondly, the idea of copyright did not exist back then. Moreover, Bach borrowed lots of music from Vivaldi decades before Mozart had even been born. Conclusion: Calling you a disappointment was clearly an understatement. Mozart is the greatest master composer of all times. Like it or not, admit it or not. Cheers!

@jakajakos Жыл бұрын

Heavenly music and performance

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Absolutely 💯

@hunterharris4869 8 ай бұрын

Check out the rendition sung by A Sei Voce if you wanna hear how it might've sounded with the ornaments. The basses don't have to worry about the inappropriate A-flat. While the high-C version is beautiful, the versions with improvised ornaments have me sold. Early Music Sources has a super in-depth on the piece if you wanna find out more about this "Frankenstein" version.

@ceciliasalgado3355 Жыл бұрын

It is a masterpiece. So beautiful

@alankruza997 Жыл бұрын

I once read a comment by a confirmed atheist that if God really existed that this would be the music of Heaven. This piece takes one to a totally different place emotionally and spiritually. Thanks for this wonderful video.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Very well said, thank you!

@Vanilthas59 5 ай бұрын

This song was one of the very first songs my first choral director showed me (Not to sing, just to hear), and it instantly take up my mind. That was six years ago, and I'm still waiting for the time to have the opportunity to sing this with a choir.

@JJJRRRJJJ Жыл бұрын

Love this, but i prefer with the boys choir. It’s a different sound, and feels unique and authentic.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I don’t know if I prefer it, but there are definitely clear differences. The tone of the boys choir gives it a bit more simplicity, more humbleness? Hard to put a finger on it.

@tomanthony3943 Жыл бұрын

The version I most often listen to is the Choir of Kings College Cambridge.

@frankteunissen6118 Жыл бұрын

I agree. That high C from a treble is … indescribable.

@papagen00 Жыл бұрын

True, we all know those Catholic priests love young boys.

@inceejigini9284 Жыл бұрын

@@papagen00 I see what you did here 😂

@Dave51677 Жыл бұрын

and know about this song because of your performance, and it's amazing

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I’ve performed it many times!

@mkshffr4936 Жыл бұрын

And the best performance I have heard.

@augustobuczek2816 Жыл бұрын

Belíssima song!

@mirkochicco9620 Жыл бұрын

Bravo!

@Laurendapoz98 Жыл бұрын

listening to this makes me miss college choir so much🥹💕

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Happy memories!!!

@mansfieldlukas1161 Ай бұрын

This is one of five different classical choral pieces I enjoy ..

@juarez-crespo1415 Жыл бұрын

Muchas gracias

@henrivanbemmel 4 ай бұрын

Probably this is in the comments below, but this is the 3rd version/arrangement of this. It was created by a mistake in transcription from the older works in the 1800's. Apparently, there was no edict from the pope, but it was sung outside of the Sistine chapel a few times and Mozart might have heard it before. This choir for me sounds bigger than the dozen or so voices. Remarkable.

@vewilli Жыл бұрын

I agree with you!

@markhughes7927 Жыл бұрын

It is to be supposed that Mozart had the audial equivalent to a photographic memory and that the story is true.

@zundema 10 ай бұрын

I love this rendition of this song

@georgealderson4424 Ай бұрын

15:29 I learned recently learned that the usually heard version is not what was intended. Nevertheless, what we hear here (!) is beautiful in the extreme! Such knowledge from such a young man! Blessings and peace sir.

@thomassicard3733 Жыл бұрын

There is not a MORE beautiful opening phrase in music. There are EQUALLY beautiful opening phrases, certainly. The entirety of musical genres demands that - and achieves that.

@Matthewcmiel Жыл бұрын

No idea if the Mozart story is true, but it's actually a really easy piece for advanced dictation, because it very clearly follows what rules, so all you truly have to do is hear a couple important lines, and the shape of the piece, and you can copy it out. This was given to me as a dictation final in college, and it was not the hardest thing on the test.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

You're right! The chords are pretty basic, but are definitely beyond my dictation skills. Thanks for sharing that - I didn't know advanced dictation was even a thing in college. Thats cool! What other pieces did you have to transcribe?

@Matthewcmiel Жыл бұрын

@@nickhiggsthesinger I mean, it was a final, so this, a Bach Chorale, a Haydn Trio Sonata, a Schubert Song, and a fugue that was written specifically for this test that was 12-tone. Sounds the hardest, but I think the Schubert was the hardest.

@anhtrinh781 9 ай бұрын

Mozart could easily transcribe even more sophisticated pieces. Why do I know that? Look at Derek Paravicini, a living man, he can differentiate like 50 layers on top of each other so yeah, shouldn't be that hard for Mozart.

@Matthewcmiel 9 ай бұрын

yup, totally agreed. Heck if I can do it, Mozart definitely can.@@anhtrinh781

@Richard-yd1ws Жыл бұрын

Should have given a shout out for Ivor Atkins of Worcester Cathedral, and friend of Elgar, who wrote out the Miserere for choirs Before then don't think anyone had heard of it I believe the top C is the only one in the repertoire Very difficult sometimes finding someone to reach it. For that reason often the piece is transposed down a tone or two

@316Minecraft Жыл бұрын

I sang this many years ago as a treble, and managed the top C! I love this piece!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Good for you! Not an easy not for any singer, so well done!

@bahoonies Жыл бұрын

@316 neil Lucky you to have had such a good treble voice. And no doubt you sang in a very good choir. It's a sublime work.

@316Minecraft Жыл бұрын

@@bahoonies Ha! I have no idea how I managed that top C, but I don't remember it being any effort. Certainly a good choir though, I was luckly to be involved, and it provided a musical grounding for the rest of my life really. I certainly can't manage high notes as well with my adult voice, I turned out to be a bass, though I sing baritone in a barbershop quartet. Work that one out!!

@manny75586 8 ай бұрын

When I studied music in college, a few people with legitimate perfect pitch and good mastery of piano could transcribe as fast as they heard the piece (those of us "damned" with mere very good relative pitch usually needed two listens). So that part of the Mozart story I believe assuming he had something to write with otherwise we start assuming he had photographic memory which has never been attested to. The part of the story that gets passed around that is absolute bullshit, is that his transcription is what allowed it to be played outside of the Sistine Chapel as it is well known that it was released to the public long before he was born. P.S. love this piece and this performance in particular

@wrorchestra1 Жыл бұрын

Funnily, the high soprano part is a cock up in the transcription. Once it was committed to paper, it was copied. Someone copied the soprano section but mistakenly transposed it an octave up. It proved very popular and it was kept. There is a great documentary on KZfaq about the history of the piece.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

So cool!

@a275ranger Жыл бұрын

That the final phrase would flow from minor and resolve in major makes perfect sense given the sequence of events during Holy Week.

@siegfriedhorner4436 6 ай бұрын

As apocryphal as the Mozart story sounds, it's nevertheless easy to believe when we understand that Mozart was involved. After all, he could reasonably be considered to have been the greatest music prodigy in the history of Western music. So while the details might well have changed over the centuries, the basic story of Mozart's memory can easily be believed.

@jaidvance1376 10 ай бұрын

I wanna sing this with others sooo badly but it's so sad we don't have choirs from where I come from. :(

@martinkalk8256 3 ай бұрын

Listen to their recording with Signum it gets even better. Also the Mozart story was said he went back a second time to complete the transcription.

@saltywench Жыл бұрын

How would anyone back then have been able to check? Unless they had a perfect pitch and memory like he did, Anyone listening to it without the sheet music in front of them would think it was exact. In all likely hood, he improved on what he heard. Maybe the reason the pope forgave him was because he improved it. At any rate, he heard it twice before it went anywhere, not once, because he went back "to make minor corrections." As the pope lifted the ban on writing it down, it seems likely the story is truish.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Thats a good point! From what we know of Mozart and his personality, it definitely is possible that he improved on what he heard. Definitely some partial truths in the story!

@theironherder Жыл бұрын

Before this video, the only performance that I'd heard was Harry Christophers The Sixteen. Based on a fallible memory, I'd say the the Tenebrae Choir did just as well. As for the Mozart story, I'd check the archives of the Vatican (easier said than done, probably) to see if there is any record of a meeting of the Pope and Mozart, that being a key part of the account. If Mozart was indeed called on the carpet as he needlessly feared, there may be a paper trail. And if that part of the story is confirmed, the rest of it seems likely.

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I’ll check them out!

@patrickmorgan7913 Жыл бұрын

The English are world masters when it comes to sacred choral music performance.

@jpaulluzolo1400 Жыл бұрын

I listened to this song in 2002 I was a young boy and I really loved it

@jannieconradie8900 Жыл бұрын

I prefer this by far before any boys choir...the rich woman voices..wow

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

They are an amazing group of singers, that’s for sure

@robertfennell9631 8 ай бұрын

I was privileged enough to sing this amazing piece for ten years In Holy Week back in The 19~70s

@vrael333 7 ай бұрын

I sang it during my days in a boys choir. Maybe you’ve heard of it: the Kreuzchor (Crucifix-choir) from Dresden in Germany. It really is one of the most emotional songs I have ever sung.

@zaccarman9542 8 ай бұрын

If you need anything else to bring a tear to your eye, read the lyrics translation (psalm 51) while listening to it and realize what they are actually saying.

@Paleos1000 10 ай бұрын

Thanks for explaining aspects of this piece, clearly. It always leaves me a tragic mess.

@huskytail Жыл бұрын

I generally prefer Orthodox chants, especially the Bulgarian tradition, but this is truly both beautiful and difficult. True mastery of a difficult art.

@robcat2075 4 ай бұрын

Great piece. Wonderful performance. 3:15 If you ever wonder why old the castles and the old chapels and the old paintings in them are all dark and muted... it's those damn candles! They look sweet and innocent, but after a few centuries of lighting by candles, everything is covered in soot!

@henninggrundler7169 Жыл бұрын

Sang it with st thomas boys choir, its harder to perform than you might think but it’s gorgeous

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Yes it is quite tricky to perform! Thank you for sharing ☺️

@zxbn4566 10 ай бұрын

Italian musicologist Elam Rotem (Early Music Sources KZfaq channel) provides a detailed account of the post-composition evolution of Allegri's Miserere Deus; the version that we commonly hear performed now is not what Allegri originally wrote. He did not write in the notes for the solo plainsong bits, and it is now thought that performers have been using a different one to what he intended, for a long time. The key-change that results in the famous high C is the result of mis-transcription in the 1880's. Also it is important to bear in mind that Gregorio Allegri wrote this in the 17th century, by which time this kind of late-mediaeval polyphony was an archaic stylistic throwback to the times and works of Giovanni da Palestrina and Carlo Gesualdo.

@rileypark6009 Жыл бұрын

I think you need to check out the kings singers, two of their former members are in the choir! The conductor and the older bass singer

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

I’m uploading a video in a few days with the kings singers!

@robertbowman5331 6 ай бұрын

One of the most ethereal pieces of music ever written. The only way you could have improved would be to have one of the 3 most famous men & boys choirs singing it: St. Thomas, Fifth Ave, NYC, or King's College Choir, Cambridge, or St John's College Choir, Cambridge.

@el7284 Жыл бұрын

Try the Tallis Scholars live in Rome version, or the 1964 King's reading with Roy Goodman on the top line

@WarpRulez 6 ай бұрын

You left out of the history of the piece the part where the modern version isn't actually the same as the original version. And I'm not just talking about subtle alterations in the ornamentation. I'm talking about an entire part of the composition being completely replaced by a pitched-up copy of the first part. That's right. The modern version has the original melody for its first verse, but the original had a slightly different melody for the second verse, and it was in the same key, rather than pitched up. William Smyth Rockstro, when he wrote his Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1880), made a hackjob of the original composition: He took transcriptions from two different sources and just appended one to the other without any regard to the original. Turns out that the second source was also a transcription of the first verse, but it was written in a different key. This is what causes that very notable pitch change up in the middle of the song (giving us the famous high-C, which didn't exist in the original.) While serendipitously the end result sounds good, it's not the original composition. It is, in fact, missing an entire second verse that has its own distinct melody, different from the modern version. (This second part hasn't been lost. It's just not sung very often. Everybody just uses Rockstro's hackjob version for some reason. Including the choir in this video.)

@paulhwbooth Жыл бұрын

Excellent. Thanks. J S Bach was very fond (too fond, perhaps?) of the Picardy third.

@BernardGreenberg Жыл бұрын

All Baroque composers used it regularly; it was "standard" for minor-key pieces. The cases where Bach DIDN'T (e.g., BWV 542) are more interesting. Also interesting are the many pieces with huge Plagal cadences built into the final cadence, e.g., where movement in G minor goes through C minor at its end to end on G major, best example (IMO) _Sei nun wieder zufrieden_ BWV 21.9. This is an outgrowth of modal practice.

@Jony5173 Жыл бұрын

Your pronunciations are ON POINT, mah man!

@nickhiggsthesinger Жыл бұрын

Oh shucks 😍

@bearieroblox6451 3 ай бұрын

The thing about Mozart was true, the pope was so impressed that he knighted him, and you can see proof of it in his portraits.

@Mercer1012 Жыл бұрын

It is true concerning Mozart. The only copies that we have originate from the Salzburg copies that Leopold sold around Europe. However, these don't have many of the unique and special ornamentation that only the authorized copies of the Sistine Chapel and the one of the Holy Roman Emperor preserve. Mozart apparently needed two hearings for it to be fully transcribed, the first to get most of it, the second to make corrections (yes, Mozart made errors from time to time). Like others have mentioned, the setup of this piece having the same phrases over and over assists in transcribing. Mozart isn't special in that he could do this by ear, any professionally trained musician could do so, he was special because he did it at 13 and he *dared* to do so.