Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) has all the features of liturgical music, which is presented here in two groups of three and four voices as a sacred motet. The title is normally reserved for a setting of the Catholic mass, and Binchois' text is the same as would be used in a liturgical service. There is some emphasis on the countertenor top voice, which implies some English influence (composers from the British Isles were the first to do this) but for the most part the music of Binchois reflects the music of Burgundy. Most memorable composers of this period were, an in any period in music history, establishing a personal relationship to musical language, but this composer seemed at least as interested in reflecting practices that were already well established at the beginning of the fourteenth century. The value of this music is in its superb craft, which generates an atmosphere of absolute preoccupation with The Divine. The text in this motet is does not stray from the traditional Agnus Dei, and it requires close listening to detect that the music is not for a standard church service. Initially, it is difficult to determine what the function of this piece would have been. For those whose love of singing is inextricable from religious fervor, this motet can be performed by a group of three and four singers in any setting. This composer was an absolutist if he was anything, and his music has lasted throughout the ages. Vocalists would have been free to sing this piece, but the traditional Agnus Dei would not have been comfortably heard outside of church, whereas this rendition of the form may have been acceptably performed in other circumstances. One does not need to be enraptured by anything other than the score to become steeped in its superior musical strengths.

© John Keillor, Rovi