motet notes - Purcell

A paraphrase of Psalm 51, "Miserere mei" by Henry Purcell is set as a very brief double canon. While there are four vocal parts, the treble voices are doubled, staggering their melodic entrances with that of the tenor and bass. It’s a rigid structure. But the result is the opposite, something painfully beautiful – a heartfelt plea, as if mercy is the only thing standing in between the us and death. 

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