SISTINE CHAPEL CHOIR: A CRITICAL REVIEW
by Alessandro Taverna
The appointment of Don Massimo Palombella as head of the Sistine choir took a little by surprise the "authorized personnel," who thought it could be explained as a sign of trust and respect for them on the part of the Holy Father and his secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.
There were many hopes: the main one was that the new director could revive a glorious musical tradition that had gradually exhausted itself, especially over the last few decades, as well as perfect the vocal quality of the choir, which has not always been laudable.
Well then, although the Sistine Chapel choir under the direction of Palombella has the merit of having recovered the practice of Palestrinian execution (previously completely forgotten in the papal Masses), it must be recognized that the vocal level of the choir has declined and worsened further.
What is particularly noticeable is the inability of the singers to maintain an acceptable …
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