Since its foundation in 1989, The Cardinall’s Musick has been a highly successful and innovative ensemble. Taking its name from the sixteenth-century English cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the group’s reputation grew through its extensive study of music from the English Renaissance. The Cardinall’s Musick now embraces a wide range of styles and periods, and has given the premieres of commissions from composers Michael Finnissy, Judith Weir and Simon Whalley. They are well known for their thoughtful, themed programmes designed to stimulate and enlighten, to broaden horizons but also to look at standard repertoire with a fresh eye.

One of the strengths of the group lies in the combination of solid academic research with the ability of its singers to perform as soloists who are also part of a vocal team. Coupled with this goes a sincere love of the music and the desire to give deeply committed live performances: ‘The voices of Andrew Carwood and his eight cohorts could probably start a blaze in the Antarctic!’ (The Times).

The Cardinall’s Musick has recorded music by Ludford, Cornysh and Fayrfax, and by Lassus, Palestrina, and Victoria, winning numerous international awards. Their first recording for Hyperion presented a programme of works by Thomas Tallis and was the Choral Category Award Winner at the 2006 Gramophone Awards. This was followed by Laudibus in sanctis (the tenth issue in their Byrd Edition and winner of a 2007 Gramophone Award), Hodie Simon Petrus and Assumpta est Maria (volumes 11 and 12 of the same series) and recordings of Francisco Guerrero and Hieronymus Praetorius. In 2010 the concluding volume of the Byrd series, Infelix ego, not only won the Gramophone Early Music Award but was voted ‘Recording of the Year’. This was only the second time in the history of the awards that a recording of Early Music had won this highest accolade.