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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Singing with Peter Philips

Andrew Leung · October 26, 2017

CTL Peter Philips AST WEEK, I had the opportunity and privilege to sing in a concert with the Tallis Vocalis under the direction of Peter Philips, the founder and director of The Tallis Scholars. Being able to work with Peter was really “a dream come true” for me and many of my colleagues. Peter and The Tallis Scholars have inspired so many musicians in the past forty years and they have successfully reintroduce the Renaissance polyphony to the world. I founded my first choir (a small liturgical choir) in college after listening to Peter’s choir, and realizing how one can produce this powerful and beautiful sound even with a small chamber choir. Since then, I have started similar groups in Atlanta, Macau, and now in Hong Kong.

One of the things that impressed me the most over the week was Peter’s extraordinary memory. After so many years of conducting polyphony, it is not surprising that he knows the music very well from his memory and can pick on the details without looking at the scores. What impressed me the most was that he had all the singers’ names memorized in a short period of time. He met half of the choir at dinner on the night he landed in Hong Kong and we each did a brief introduction of ourselves at the table. On the second evening, we had our first rehearsal and he was able to greet us with our names, the singers he met on the previous evening; he met the rest of the choir there (26 of us all together). By the second rehearsal, he knew exactly, by names, who were missing or late to the rehearsal. I think this is a very useful skill for conductors. It allows us to engage our singers and to maintain a friendly relationships. As a singer, I felt my importance in the group as I was treated with respect by the leader.

On the musical aspects, Peter is a very disciplined musician. He takes a pretty straight approach on the tempo and rhythm of the pieces. Instead of the more romantic approach, he asked the choir not to make long pauses after cadences and not to rit too early at the end of a piece. For example, in Byrd’s “Ave Verum Corpus“, he preferred the altos and tenors to pick up right away the “miserere mei” phrase without pausing after the cadence of “O Jesu Fili Mariae”; there was also no ritardando until the second-to-the-last measure, which is when everyone sing “-men” of the “Amen”.

Regarding singing with vibrato in Renaissance pieces, he doesn’t think that polyphonies have to be sung with absolute straight tone. He says that vibrato is a natural thing and it helps the singers to express the melodies and texts more fully. However, he did point out that it can be overdone, especially in the top voice, and consequently can affect the tuning.

Here is a video of Peter Philips talking about Renaissance music:


Last week was a very fruitful week! I am blessed to be able to work with Peter and to learn from him. If you are interested to know more about Peter Philips and The Tallis Scholars, you can read his book, or watch this video on Youtube where he talks about the origins of his choir.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Andrew Leung

Andrew Leung currently serves the music director of Vox Antiqua, conductor of the Cecilian Singers, and music director at Our Lady of China Church.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Cardinal Ranjith on “Active Participation”
    From 2005–2009, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith served as Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. He was considered ‘papabile’ during the last conclave. On 8 December 2008, he wrote this powerful statement concerning Gregorian Chant, participatio actuosa, celebration “ad orientem,” and other subjects. When it comes to the question of what “sacred” means, Monsignor Robert A. Skeris provides a marvelous answer.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 22nd in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 31 August 2025, which is the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the spectacular feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “The Worm That Dieth Not”
    My pastor asked me to write a column for our parish bulletin with reflections on the sacred liturgy and church music. In my most recent article, I discuss “The Worm That Dieth Not.” At this website, you can access it conveniently; simply scroll down to the one dated 31 August 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Solemn “Salve Regina” (Chant)
    How many “S” words can you think of using alliteration? How about Schwann Solemn Salve Score? You can download the SOLEMN SALVE REGINA in Gregorian Chant. The notation follows the official rhythm (EDITIO VATICANA). Canon Jules Van Nuffel, choirmaster of the Cathedral of Saint Rumbold, composed this accompaniment for it (although some feel it isn’t his best work).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“The cemeteries are full of people who thought they were indispensable.”

— Fr. Alan Heet, OFM

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