Old Music Monday: John Sheppard and Making Whole
If you had to pick one phrase for 2020, what would it be? The year that sucketh? 2020: F You? What about a Latin phrase: Media vita in morte sumus, which means, “in the midst of life, we are in death”? That’s the name of the monumental work of John Sheppard, who lived from 1515 to 1558, was a gentleman of the Chapel Royal, and sang at the funeral of Edward VI. And a new recording from the early music consort Alamire might just be the perfect soundtrack for periods of quiet contemplation as we near the finish line of this year.
David Skinner, director of the Alamire consort (the the first live interview I ever did for my podcast) writes in the album notes:
Sheppard is a quirky and highly individual composer, and it may be argued that the breadth and quality of his works rarely holds up to that of his earlier contemporary Thomas Tallis. However, when Sheppard shines he is beyond glorious, and the monumental six-part Media vita in morte sumus is undoubtedly among the greatest of his creations.
David Skinner
While the Media Vita has been recorded over a dozen times by leading groups, the Alamire recording from July 2020 is a bit different. They pull on recent scholarship by Professor John Harper and Jason Smart that demonstrates that the previous recordings may have been incorrect from a liturgical standpoint. The details of the differences involve which parts repeat, and what the original liturgical performance would have sounded like, given that the source for Sheppards composition is a copy made several decades later with little notation. If the musicology really interests you, you can download the album notes free on the Resonus Classics website with highlights of the research.
And while I find the musicology fascinating, the music itself is a haunting mix of plainchant and polyphony. The words, in the midst of life we are in death, are harsh. The polyphony offers a redemption – we put our faith in God and salvation to help us find beauty and peace. And whether you are religious or not, this music offers a salvation of sorts.
The rood word of salvation is the Greek, Soteria. And the word Soteria can mean many different things, all related to making whole. Consider for example that you can add salve to a wound to help it heal. Soteria, and salvation, meant something along the lines of, “to make complete” or “to make whole.” And if there’s one thing I think we can all agree on is that 2020 tore us apart. Ideologically, physically, mentally – this year is messing with us all in ways that it may take years to fully process. If there has ever been a time when we need to make ourselves – and each other – whole, this is it.
Sheppard (and Alamire) remind us that death is always here, but we can be made whole through our faith, through love, through family, through beauty, through music itself. The album itself can be listened to in less than 20 minutes. And I’ve found that it’s a much better way to spend that time – being made whole through music – than spending the same 20 minutes on social media.
