New work: In nomine ‘Shivering’

Virtaperko’s new viol consort work In nomine ‘Shivering’ continues the instrumental polyphonic In nomine tradition of the English Renaissance. Like few hundred other In nomines, In nomine ‘Shivering’ is built around John Taverner’s plainchant melody from 1530, a melody that became a default cantus firmus for the whole genre.

”In nomine tradition is a unique English musical phenomenon of the late Renaissance period. The idea to obsessively and exclusively stick on the particular cantus firmus by Taverner and using it as a frame for polyphonic instrumental expression is intriguing. Practically every composer of the late English Renaissanse wanted to show what he could make out of this famous and familiar ”musical meme”. In nomine cantus firmus indeed turned out to provide composers with a fruitful source of inspiration, producing some of the finest and most complex polyphonic masterpieces of the Renaissance instrumental repertoire. The last true consort master to contribute the genre was John Jenkins, one of my all-time favorite composers, who in the mid-17th century ”breathed new life into the antiquated form of the In nomine” (as expressed by Marta Bishop). That pretty much sums up of what I had in my mind when I worked on my two In nomines, In nomine revised (2014) and In nomine ‘Shivering’ (2015).

Being a part of a long tradition feels like a value in itself, but trying to come up with something new and unique is also a great challence. I hope these two works manage to bring some fresh ideas andf contemporary reflections to an ancient tradition while remining faithful to the original In nomine spirit.” (O.V. June 2015)

See the detailed description of the work (with a downloadable full score and recording) here.