Tonus Peregrinus

TONUS PEREGRINUS, a vocal ensemble made up of first-rank singers led by Pitts.” All Music Guide “In terms of sheer beauty of performance and recording, this disc takes some beating.” Fanfare “one of the most rewarding I’ve heard for years.” On an Overgrown Path “it's pretty much impossible not to reach a state of bliss after listening…” Musical Toronto “My first impulse on hearing this disc was to commend it unreservedly to each and every man, woman, and child on the planet.” Fanfare TONUS PEREGRINUS was founded by Antony Pitts in 1990 at New College, Oxford, and today is an established ensemble in Britain, winning the Cannes Classical Award for the ensemble’s debut release and No.1 album of Arvo Pärt’s Passio – Editor’s Choice in Gramophone, as also the Hyperion album Seven Letters. At the core of TONUS PEREGRINUS are a dozen musicians - Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, Rebecca Hickey, Lisa Beckley, Kathryn Knight, Alexander L’Estrange, Richard Eteson, Benedict Hymas, Matthew Long, Alexander Hickey, Alex Knight, Francis Brett, Nick Flower - who combine their diverse expertise to interpret a repertoire ranging from the Dark Ages to scores where the ink is still wet. This breadth is reflected in the name of the ensemble which comes from an ancient plainsong psalm tone with Jewish origins, directly linked to the Passover and the Last Supper: the tonus peregrinus chant starts on a different note in each half, hence “wandering tone” and was nicknamed tonus novissimus.