Occasionally a composer is remembered not because of his own works, but by association with someone more important. Such is the case with the fifteenth century English composer Walter Frye. Although he was prominent in his day, he wouldn't get much thought if his music wasn't associated with figures like Jacob Obrecht and, more importantly, Josquin Desprez. Frye owes some gratitude to the fact that such a relatively small number of Josquin masses survive. Among only 20, the Missa "Faisant regretz" necessarily stands out, a mass based Frye's rondeau Tout a par moy. The title of Josquin's mass comes from the fourth line of the text, "Je me tiens seul comme une ame esbaye/faisant regretz de ma dolente vie" (I remain isolated like a troubled soul/ashamed of my life of suffering). Tout a par moy is not a cheerful poem by any measure, but Frye set it as an ironically tuneful, sprightly song. The "Faisant regretz" motif he set to a tight, four-note motif—a falling third, a rising tone, and a falling tone—is what Josquin seems to have found great inspiration in. From that innocuous fragment, he spins his entire mass, a work suffused with the warmth, imaginative exuberance, and rhythmic infectiousness characteristic of his music. Almost every bar of Missa "Faisant regretz" directly alludes to or quotes the borrowed motif. Josquin plays it with astonishing imaginativeness against the plainchant appropriate to each movement, re-molding, refashioning, and juggling in an endless variety of ways. Rather than resulting in an overly repetitive piece, this compactness of material gives the mass extraordinary forward thrust and a puzzle-like fascination. Frye's motif is almost used like a riff in a jazz solo, a musical premise to ground an inspired improvisation. That structural hierarchy is flipped at some of the climactic moments, and Josquin really shows his stuff. The Gloria, for example, often the most memorable movement in a Josquin mass, peaks at a dazzling, shimmering passage with the "Faisant regretz" motif sounding in every voice. It's a magical moment reminiscent of the science fiction-like visual/aural effects found in classic works like Brumel's Missa "Et Ecce Terrae Motus" or Thomas Tallis' Spem in allium. Frye couldn't have asked for better company.

© All Music Guide