We begin our 50th anniversary concert as we began our 40th anniversary concert on February 9, 2013, with the festive Laudibus in sanctis by William Byrd. This setting of Psalm 150 appears in his Canciones Sacrae, published in 1589, as Part I of a double motet, and is one of only two of Byrd’s settings of an entire psalm. This could be because Psalm 150 isthe Bible’s conclusion of a collection of five psalms of praise (146–150) in which everyone and everything is exhorted to praise God everywhere. The text of the psalm lists the various instruments by which God is praised, and Byrd’s setting of the Latin paraphrase uses choral orchestration and imitations of the various instruments, leading to a grand finale where everything with breath praises the Lord. Laudibus is a joyful liturgical party piece, filled with syncopations, onomatopoetic wordplay and dance rhythms, that has more in common with the 16th-century Italian madrigal than with the typical English church motet of Byrd’s time. It is splendidly lively, virtuosic and great fun to sing.

William Byrd lived in interesting times, living an equally matched life. He maintained connections at court, connections within the outlawed Catholic church, and connections with famous composers of the time. Some of these, including Alfonso Ferrabosco I and Thomas Tallis, influenced him, while others, including Thomas Tomkins, were Byrd’s students. Although Tallis was Byrd’s teacher, the two later became business partners, and in 1575 they received royal warrants for publishing music and music paper.

One of the most fascinating aspects of Byrd’s life is the constant tension between his well-known allegiance to the Roman Catholic Church and his necessary obeisance to the newfangled Anglican Church. Both he and his wife were placed on lists of recusancy and were fined because of it yet were tolerated enough to avoid further punishment – probably because of Byrd’s talent and popularity. While Byrd’s sympathies were clearly with Catholicism, he managed to write enduring music for the Anglican Church as well. The body of his secular consort music is important also; his songs, consort pieces, and keyboard works are important enough to stand alongside his choral works, which at the end of his life numbered more than four hundred.