Ensemble Bellechose
sings Orlando di Lasso

St Matthias acoustic highlights Lassus’s intricate lines of Renaissance polyphony

By Andrew Burlone

April 29, 2026

Ensemble Bellechose returns to St Matthias’ Anglican Church in Westmount on Saturday, May 2 at 7 pm with an all‑Lassus program, From Earth to Sky, celebrating one of the towering musical figures of the Renaissance. Under the direction of conductor Haodong Ma, the ensemble brings a finely honed sense of style and text sensitivity to this repertoire. The concert explores the astonishing breadth of Orlando di Lasso’s output, from playful, even profane, secular works to music of ardent devotion and luminous calm.

From Earth to Sky traces Lassus’s journey from earthy songs to devotion.

Born in what is now Belgium around 1530–1532, Orlando di Lasso, also known as Roland de Lassus, spent much of his career in Munich and became one of the most widely admired composers of his age. He wrote well over a thousand pieces in multiple languages – Latin, Italian, French, and German – and moved with ease between courtly chansons, witty madrigals, drinking songs, and intricate sacred polyphony. His contemporaries hailed him as the Prince of Musicians, and his works circulated across Europe long before recordings or streaming.

Orlando di Lasso, aka Roland Lassus

From Earth to Sky offers listeners a glimpse into this vast catalogue by juxtaposing Lassus at his most playful, profane, ardent, and reverent. Without tying itself to a single liturgical season, the program traces an arc from the down-to-earth energy of secular songs to the contemplative space of motets and other sacred works, mirroring the title’s journey from the everyday world toward something more transcendent. It is the kind of narrative programming that has quickly become a hallmark of Ensemble Bellechose, following their February concert Shadow and Light / Le carême et le renouveau, which guided audiences through a spiritual journey from lament to praise.

The ensemble itself is a compact, flexible chamber choir of experienced singers that has found an ideal home at St Matthias’ Anglican Church. The church’s warm yet clear acoustic allows the interweaving lines of Renaissance polyphony to emerge with both transparency and richness, inviting listeners to hear details of text and counterpoint that can easily blur in a larger space. For local audiences, it is also a chance to experience world-class early music in a familiar neighbourhood setting, without crossing a bridge or braving downtown traffic.

‘Long-time collaborators reunite to explore Lassus’s rich, stylistically flexible catalogue.’

For this concert, Ensemble Bellechose brings together several long‑time musical collaborators and singers who have made music together in various contexts over the years and now reunite under the Ensemble Bellechose banner. That sense of shared history and ensemble intimacy is particularly well‑suited to Lassus, whose works often depend less on sheer volume than on the subtle give‑and‑take of phrasing, tuning, and text expression among a small group.

From Earth to Sky is also an invitation to rediscover Lassus beyond the “greatest hits” occasionally heard on recordings. By placing secular and sacred works side by side, the program highlights how the same composer can turn a quick wit and affection for word‑painting to humorous or earthy texts in one piece, and then channel a similar intensity toward more serious spiritual subjects in another. For listeners who know Renaissance music mainly through Palestrina or Victoria, this concert offers a complementary voice – one that is cosmopolitan, stylistically flexible, and unafraid to blur the boundaries between court, church, and tavern.

About the conductor Haodong Ma

Haodong Ma, a choral conductor, music educator, and tenor from Xinjiang, China, is currently a D.Mus Candidate in Choral Conducting at Schulich School of Music, where he studies with Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée. He previously earned a master’s degree with highest honours in Kodály Music Pedagogy from the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy of Music, as well as a bachelor’s degree in music education from the Xi’an Conservatory of Music.

‘The Ensemble Bellechose is a compact, flexible chamber choir of experienced singers that has found an ideal home at St Matthias’ Anglican Church.’

As a conductor, Haodong leads the McGill University Chorus, and he has been the Music Director of Ensemble Bellechose since December 2025. He also served as a Teaching Assistant for McGill Choral Studies (2024–25), supporting rehearsals of the Schulich Singers, University Chorus, and McGill Camerata. During his studies in Hungary, he was Musical Director of the Csíkkamara Chamber Choir (2022–24) and Assistant Conductor of the Csíkszerda Choir (2020–24). As a tenor, Haodong is a professional chorister in ensembles such as the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul. His ensemble experience further includes the Asia Pacific Youth Choir, the Schulich Singers, and Cappella Quinqueecclesiensis Kamarakórus. He also co-founded the Sajt Ensemble in Hungary under the mentorship of Dr. Árpád Tóth.

From Earth to Sky

Tickets are available online through Zeffy, and a free reception will follow the performance, giving audience members a chance to meet the musicians and continue the conversation sparked by Lassus’s music. For early‑music aficionados and curious newcomers alike, it promises an evening where Renaissance polyphony feels very much alive in 21 century Westmount.

Saturday, May 2 at 7 pm
St Matthias’ Anglican Church
131 ch. de la Côte St‑Antoine, Westmount

Images: Wikipedia Commons