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Nouvelle, Nouvelle: A 16th-Century French Christmas Midnight Mass

Piffaro, the Renaissance Band
Nowell's Delight.
Nowell's Delight.

Piffaro, the Renaissance Band presented a midnight mass service featuring Claudin de Sermisy's Missa voulant Honneur, French Noel songs, and a nativity play. By bringing the Noels and the play into a liturgical setting, Piffaro followed a tradition associated with the Christmas season that harkens back to medieval times. Piffaro was joined by guest soprano Laura Heimes and tenor Philip Anderson, and actors Mark Jaster and Sabrina Mandell. The performance incorporated images and text from a 1520s Noel manuscript housed in the Rare Books Collection of the Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation.


Recipient
Piffaro, the Renaissance Band

Piffaro, the Renaissance Band

Founded in Philadelphia in 1980, Piffaro performs 15th- through 17th-century music. Under the artistic direction of Joan Kimball and Robert Wiemken, the ensemble has released 16 CDs since 1992, including four on the prestigious Deutsche Grammophon/Archiv Produktion label, as well as on Dorian Recordings and Parma/Navano.

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