Benevoli: Missae Angelus Domini & Dum Complerentur – I Fagiolini

Two multi-choir masses from mid-17th-century Rome (one for Easter, the other one based on Palestrina’s motet for Pentecost) complete I Fagiolini’s tribute to the ‘lost’ music of Orazio Benevoli. Maestro of the cappella giulia at St Peter’s, Rome, Benevoli’s mastery of surround sound is clear in these very different works. The sheer quality of his music shines through and, sung by a group at the height of its powers, changes our view of 17th-century multi-choir music.