This collection features original polyphonic works from the Middle Ages to Bach, which are relatively easy to perform. ´Ecce quod natura´ and ´Nowell sing we´ are carols taken from English manuscripts of the XV century. In this period, the carol was a simple song with verse and refrain. These carols have a simple homorhythmic structure, with some interesting rhythmic irregularities: the style is something between medieval and Renaissance. ´Nowell sing we´ combines Latin and early English.
´Coventry Carol´ is a simple carol, telling the story of the Three Kings, here presented in the original version.
´Remember o thou man´ features a very beautiful melody, especially in the part of the tenor. The composer was only looking for fine melodic lines, without being particularly concerned about the correctness of the harmony, which sounds harsh in some passages - this is a typical early English feature.
´Dadme al bricias´ and ´Verbum caro´ are ´villancicos´, (which means Spanish songs in folk-like style), taken from a XVI century manuscript (Cancionero de Uppsala).
´Porta celato´ and ´Nell´apparir del sempiterno Sole´ are ´laudi´. The ´lauda´ (plural, ´laudi´) was an Italian genre similar to the English carol, which was much used in Rome, especially in the Oratory of St Philip Neri, for which many important composers worked, such as Victoria, Palestrina, and Lassus.
´O Jesulein suss´ and ´Es ist ein Ros entsprungen´ are relatively simple Lutheran chorales. The chorale was a harmonization of a traditional liturgical melody.