Early in 2025, Michael Talbot identified as previously unrecognized compositions by Pietro Antonio Fiocco a group of eight Latin motets scored, like chamber duets in the secular domain, for two voices with continuo. Six different combinations are used: two sopranos, soprano and alto; soprano and tenor; soprano and bass; alto and tenor; alto and bass. Fiocco was an absolute master of counterpoint, and this shows. In three to six contrasted sections, these motets ‘tick all the boxes’. They are tuneful, feature captivating imitative play between the parts, are rich and varied in harmonic content, and express the meaning of the words (in six cases taken directly from the Psalms) with eloquence and panache.

 Music example (pdf)