Spem in Alium means hope in no other and is a Latin text talking about having hope in God. The piece is a motet which means that it is a religious piece of music that is sung A cappella (with no instruments).

 

The motet is written for eight choirs of five voices each - soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass. Tallis wanted all of the singers to stand in a horseshoe shape. The motet begins with a single voice from the first choir. Then other voices join in imitation, each in turn stopping as the music moves around the eight choirs. After the last voice has finished, all forty voices enter at the same time for a few measures. Then the pattern of the opening is reversed with the music passing from choir eight to choir one. There is another forty-voice section, after which the choirs sing in pairs, throwing the sound across the space between them. Finally all voices join for the final section of the piece.

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Spem in Alium is one of the most challenging and beautiful pieces to sing. Here are some different performances.