Richard Dering (c.1580-1630) was an English composer and organist who spent much of his life abroad. Like his compatriot Peter Philips (c.1560-1628) he lived and worked in the Low Countries on account of his Catholicism, then intolerable in their native England. By 1617, Dering was organist at covent of English nuns in Brussels, and was appointed organist in 1625 to Queen Henrietta Maria shortly after her marriage to King Charles I.

Dering’s output comprises both sacred and secular forms, and he is perhaps most famous for his two books of motets printed in 1617 (5vv) and 1618 (6vv). As the title of the source suggests, Dering’s sacred motets have a madrigalian flavour, and therefore bridge the gap between sacred and secular styles. Moreover, it is likely that these were intended as pieces for domestic recreation rather than for specific and exclusive use in church. This can also be said of the motet collections of Peter Philips (1612 and 1613) and Sweelinck (1619) which were issued by the same publisher. ‘Quem vidistis pastores’ with its choppy rhythms and exultant Alleluias conveys the excitement of the impending birth of Christ as announced to the shepherds. However, this rather limits the possible timeframe for the performance of the motet - the shepherds appear only very early on in the Christmas narrative, and return to their work shortly thereafter (they are certainly long gone by the time the Magi arrive). This piece should therefore (where possible) be placed near the very start of the season, namely at Midnight Mass or on Christmas Day itself.