L’Homme armé (The Armed Man) was one of the most famous popular songs in the whole Europe of the late Middle-Ages and Renaissance. All along the 15th and 16th centuries, dozens of composers used this melodic theme as a cantus firmus in their masses, the first example being Guillaume Dufay. In 1986 this jewel of polyphonic art received a landmark rendition by the Hilliard Ensemble. This recording also features motets, including the vertiginous Nuper rosarum flores, an incredible feat of strength first performed in 1436 for the completion of the dome of Florence’s cathedral: some musicologists claim Dufay related the rhythmic ratio between the parts of the works and the architectural proportions of the building!
