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Armed with a marvelous moniker, His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts (HMS&C) is a remarkable early music ensemble, and their Music for The Twelve Days of Christmas and The Nativity--or just The Twelve Days of Christmas, for short--is remarkably grand. As a holiday music reviewer, my tour of seasonal offerings often uncovers some of the coolest and most creative gems--talents I would likely not have otherwise discovered. These talented Brits definitely qualify as gems, and their seasonal release sparkles with brassy professionalism and ingenuity.

If you are anything like me, your first reaction to this album was likely "What on earth is a sagbutt (also known as a sackbutt)?" The term sounds vaguely naughty, yet familiar; the sagbutt is in fact the forerunner of the modern trombone. Not surprisingly, the HMS&C ensemble prominently features sagbutts (in addition to cornetts, bagpipes, organ, recorder, percussion, virginals/harpsichord, and an outstanding soprano here).

I must confess--between the word "sagbutts" and the humorous cover photo of the HMS&C's faces superimposed over the figures in a nativity scene, I initially thought that the album might be going just for laughs, but this is no novelty offering. HMS&C is the real deal, a very well-respected early music brass ensemble providing serious musicianship through and through, while maintaining terrific balance and a whimsical perspective. The album first explores "The Nativity" (tracks 1-10), then takes its listeners on an inspired journey through "The Twelve Days of Christmas" (tracks 11-23).

The album nicely blends vocals and instrumentals. Soprano Faye Newton has a lovely, spot-on, crystalline tone; her delicate voice rises effortlessly over the instrumentation with clarity and warmth. Her Es is ein Ros entsprungen and Coventry Carol are especially memorable. My primary curiosity here was the album's treatment of "The Twelve Days of Christmas," carefully selecting period pieces about each featured "day" of the carol. Thus, the initial track is Hawking for the Partridge, matching what the "true love" delivers on the first day of Christmas. Of course, this ultimately means that "The Twelve Days of Christmas" pieces are not strictly about Christmas at all; rather, they feature French hens or five gold rings, etc. As a result, The Twelve Days of Christmas resonates on two levels: as a beautifully-executed holiday offering of ancient carols, and as a satisfying exploration of exquisite early music pieces that could entertain listeners throughout the year.

For fans of early music, this album is a no-brainer. HMS&C is an intensely talented and stylish crew; their holiday release is stimulating and stirring. Well done, HMS&C!

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2008)

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From the liner notes:

Faye Newton: soprano
Jeremy West: cornett & bagpipes
Jamie Savan: cornett
Adam Woolf, Abigail Newman, Stephen Saunders: sagbutts
Gary Cooper: organ, virginals & harpsichord
Stephen Henderson: percussion
Keith McGowan: bagpipes & recorder

This recording presents some of the huge variety of musical styles used to celebrate Christmas across Europe from the 12th- to the 17th-centuries. The first half is a musical sequence illustrating The Nativity, while the second offers a whistle-stop tour of each of the '12 Days of Christmas' as represented in the ever-popular song. Although some of this music remains in use for the celebration of Christmas today, we also include some musical 'stocking-fillers' which we hope will make pleasurable listening all year round.

Recorded in the church of St. John the Evangelist, Upper Norwood, London, 25-27 July 2007
Programme researched, arranged, designed and directed by Adam Woolf
Producers: Roger Harvey & Stephen Saunders
Engineer: Stephen Saunders
Booklet design: Adam Woolf
Photography: Bridget Saunders


From the Website:

His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts is a group of virtuoso wind players who specialise in playing Renaissance and Baroque music in historically appropriate styles on original instruments. The noble sound of cornetts and sackbuts was among the most versatile instrumental colours available to composers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. It was heard in many musical contexts: in consort or in alternation with voices in the extravagant liturgy of the great Italian and Spanish churches - above all the Basilica of St Mark's in Venice; in aristocratic entertainments such as the intermedii of northern Italy or the masques of Jacobean England; and in the ceremonial and devotional music for the courts and free cities of Lutheran Germany.

In its heyday the cornett was one of the most favoured of wind instruments being employed by composers in courts and churches. Blown like a trumpet but fingered like a recorder, it is capable of both astonishing virtuosity and heart-rending vocal expression. In 1636 one writer compared its sound in a church to 'a ray of sunshine piercing the shadows'.

The sackbut is the direct forerunner of the modern trombone - indeed the Italians already called it trombone, or 'large trumpet' - but perfectly matches the vocal timbre of the cornett, thanks to its relatively narrow bore and shallow mouthpiece. Despite its slide mechanism, early composers often wrote for it in an amazingly florid manner and of course because of its slide mechanism, the sackbut was able to play more harmonically evolved music and was used by chamber music and church music composers across Europe until the middle of the 18th century.



His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts: Biography

Patron: Sir John Eliot Gardiner

His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts is celebrating its 25th season this year having given its debut concert in London in 1982. The group's illustrious sounding name is taken from Matthew Locke's "five-part things for His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts" that were probably played during the coronation celebrations for King Charles II in 1661.

Essentially a recital group comprising two cornetts, three sackbutts and chamber organ, HMS&C often joins with singers and string players, and is frequently asked to take part in projects with choirs: John Eliot Gardiner's Monteverdi Choir, the BBC Singers, and the choirs of Trinity and King's College, Cambridge, as well as those of Westminster Abbey, St Paul's and Westminster Cathedrals, London.

His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Artist site

Track List