Lusitano and other Portuguese composers
VOICES
Tutor: Rory McCleery
St Agnes & St Pancras Church, 1 Buckingham Ave, Liverpool L17 3BA
Reviewer: Valerie Pedlar
Workshop with Rory McCleery: 13 September 2025
The church of St Agnes and St Pancras provided a warm welcome to the 40 or so singers who assembled on Saturday 13 September to explore some Portuguese music of the late Renaissance with Rory McCleery. It was a long time since I had attended a NWEMF workshop but I realised again the thrill of meeting music that I had not encountered before, of sight-reading with a group of enthusiastic and very capable singers, and of course of being instructed and conducted by an experienced professional.
Rory McCleery was a stimulating tutor, whose patience and good humour never seemed to fail. He has the knack of getting the best out of his singers and he gave us interesting information about the composers: Duarte Lobo (c.1565-1646), Pedro de Cristo (c.1550-1618) and Vicente Lusitano (d. after 1561). This is music that is not so familiar. I was interested to learn that Portuguese composers were writing in the Italian renaissance style only later in the sixteenth century, by which time other European composers had moved towards the baroque. Most of the music we sang was for eight voices, and it was mostly polyphonic, only di Cristo varying the two pieces we sang by him (Miserere and Magnificat) with passages in a homophonic style.
The programme for the day was well-paced: warm-up exercises of course, then the pieces that were graded from the short and relatively simple to the complex interweaving of eight voices. We started with Pater peccavi by Lobo, in which the second sopranos were encouraged to sing the Miserere cantus firmus with fervour. I don’t think I’ve ever found a cantus firmus more rewarding to sing. Then his Audivi vocem de caelo, which interestingly does not end in the tonic; it resists a final resolution. The two pieces by di Cristo offered further challenges, particularly his Magnificat, which exploits the two-choir set-up with lines of plainchant and a central section for just four parts, two sopranos, alto and tenor.
In the afternoon we sang two pieces by Lusitano: Regina caeli and Inviolata, a work for eight voices in which he pays homage to Josquin. Lusitano is an interesting figure, composer and theorist, who is now credited with being the first Black composer, who was ordained in the Catholic church but later converted to Protestantism and who spent most of his life outside Portugal, living in Rome and later Germany. We ended the day as a mixed-voice circle in the nave of the church singing Lusitano’s monumental Inviolata; an exciting experience to conclude this exploration of Portuguese renaissance music.
Valerie Pedlar
Published in November 2025 Newsletter
Fr Andrew arranged for a video recording to be made on the day from the gallery above the main entrance – you can find this on our YouTube channel, and it’s fascinating to watch Rory conduct.
You can download the audio file here:
Feedback from the day:
“What an extraordinary musician and communicator is Rory! From indifferent singing in the morning he inspired, cajoled, persuaded us to give a musical and convincing performance of the Lusitano in the afternoon…“
“I wanted to say how much I enjoyed yesterday. I’m so glad I went – what a lovely way to spend the day, singing completely unknown beautiful music. I thought the whole event was very well organised and enjoyed my meal deal! Rory was dynamic, interesting, positive and encouraging. I enjoyed listening to him sing and find it helpful when conductors demonstrate how they want something to sound… I will definitely look out for the Marian Consort…”
“Rory’s energy and enthusiasm are contagious!”
“A huge thank you for organising such a wonderfully memorable music filled day. The experience of singing the Inviolata will stay with me for a very long time.“
“I found Rory a really exceptional tutor and quite a breath of fresh air. I’ve been aware of Lusitano for a couple of years but have never performed his music so it was great to be immersed in it and the music by others.”
“Congrats on a splendid NWEMF day yesterday! I thought it all went really well: Rory was on great form, the church, albeit slightly chilly, was a lovely location and acoustic as well as very helpful thanks to Zoe and Dan.”
“I thought the standard of singing on the day was excellent…probably one of the best EMF workshops I have been to voice-wise!”
More information about the day
Vicente Lusitano (his surname being a descriptor, simply meaning ‘Portuguese’) remains a largely unknown figure to modern audiences and performers, despite the obvious quality of his music and his contemporary renown as both music theorist and composer. Thankfully, the last few years have seen a renewed interest in his music, not least thanks to his important status as a ‘pardo’ and therefore very likely the first ever published black composer. (For more information, see Vicente Lusitano – A Legacy Recovered by Garrett Schumann, Early Music America, 14 August 2023.)
Led by Scottish conductor, singer and musicologist Rory McCleery, who has been at the vanguard of the Lusitano ‘renaissance’ (his award-winning recording of Lusitano’s music with The Marian Consort – the first to be entirely dedicated to the composer – has led to their giving concert performances of this repertoire across the UK, Europe and the US), we will be exploring a selection of Lusitano’s works, interspersed with music by his Portuguese contemporaries and successors.
Planned repertoire for the day:
Vicente Lusitano (c.1520-1561)
Inviolata
Regina caeli laetare
Pedro de Cristo (c.1540-1618)
Miserere mihi, Domine
Magnificat Octavi toni
Duarte Lobo (c.1565-1646)
Pater peccavi
Audivi vocem de caelo
The Tutor
Rory McCleery is an award-winning Scottish conductor, countertenor and musicologist. Internationally renowned for his compelling interpretations of a wide range of repertoire, he is particularly associated with the choral music of the Renaissance and Baroque, and is also increasingly known for his affinity with the music of contemporary British composers. Rory has appeared at prestigious venues including the Wigmore Hall and BBC Proms and has directed choirs and led masterclasses, study days and workshops in the USA, Spain, Germany, France and Italy. He features regularly on radio and television, including the recent BBC2 series ‘Art That Made Us’.
Rory is Founder and Artistic Director of The Marian Consort, with whom he performs internationally, including a recent televised tour of Japan. Rory has an extensive discography with The Marian Consort on both Delphian and Linn Records, including many first recordings of both new and historic music which have garnered a variety of accolades and awards including the Diapason D’Or, Presto Classical Album of the Year and the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. When not researching and conducting, Rory is also active as a countertenor, performing as a soloist with ensembles including The Dunedin Consort, English Consort and Ensemble 1604.
