Luca Marenzio was one of the most renowned composers of madrigals, and wrote perhaps the finest examples of the form in its late stage of development, prior to its early Baroque transformation by Monteverdi. While Marenzio wrote some sacred music in the form of motets, and madrigali spirituali (madrigals based on religious texts), the vast majority of his work, and his enduring legacy, is his enormous output of madrigals. They vary in style, technique and tone through the two decades of his composing career.

As the old saying goes, "the third time's the charm." This is indeed the third time the German label Accent has issued this coupling of Domenico Scarlatti's Stabat Mater with João Rodrigues Esteves' Missa a oito voces. The first time was in 1990, when the recording by Currende under the leadership of Erik van Nevel was new, and the second in 1998 as part of a box set containing this and several recordings by Concerto Palatino. No complaints here, though, as this is one of the finest discs Accent has to offer.

The compositions of Hans Leo Hassler stand at the turn of style from late Renaissance polyphony to Venetian early Baroque sound development. Counterpoint scholarship is combined with highest grace and tenderness. With the Ensemble Currende under Erik van Nevel, a varied compilation of Hassler's sacred and secular works can be heard.