Sacred Music (tv series)

Sacred Music was a four-part series first broadcast on BBC Four between 21 March and 11 April 2008 and presented by actor and former chorister Simon Russell Beale. It was produced in conjunction with The Open University.

The series featured numerous performances by the choir The Sixteen and their director Harry Christophers.

=Episodes=

Programme One: The Gothic Revolution

How plainsong became polyphony, and the rise of the Notre Dame school of composers in Paris in the twelfth century.

Programme Two: Palestrina and the Popes

The story of the Papal composers in the High Renaissance, and how Palestrina adapted to the counter-reformation to produce a new kind of polyphony.

Programme Three: Tallis, Byrd and the Tudors

This programme looked at the English Reformation and the music of William Byrd and Thomas Tallis, including Byrd's covert Catholic beliefs and how they influenced his music.

Programme Four: Bach and the Lutheran Legacy

Luther's Protestant Germany and how his use of congregational singing influenced the sacred works of J.S. Bach.

=External Links=
* http://www.open2.net/sacredmusic/index.html