JOSQUIN DES PREZ: MOTETS FOR THE BLESSED VIRGIN - Cappella Nova, Richard Taruskin

CAPPELLA NOVA Josquin liner notes

Few composers have ever achieved such undisputed preeminence in the eyes of their contemporaries as Josquin des Prez enjoyed at the beginning of the 16th century. Before his time, composers, however great, were valued as craftsmen, not artists as we use the term. And later, opinion was rarely unanimous, nor did contemporary estimates always agree with ours. Bach was esteemed far beneath many lesser lights- or so now we think. Partisans of Brahms and Wagner battled one another in the 19th century, as those of Schoenberg and Stravinsky continue to do today. Only Beethoven seems to rival Josquin's musícal hegenony over his time. And many interesting parallels can in fact be drawn between Josquin and Beethoven as cultural figures. Both of them achieved legendary and symbolic status within their lifetimes, and both of them broke through to plateaus of prestige and cultural influence beyond the reach of any predecessor. By the force of their example they each caused the world to look not only upon their music, but upon music itself, with new eyes, and to listen with new ears.