Month: July 2017

Jill Feldman, Nigel North, Sarah Cunningham, Davitt Moroney
140:00 (2 CDs in a card sleeve)
Arcana A430 (c) 1992/93

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his major collection of music by Henry Purcell features one CD of music for soprano, lute and viol drawn from the publication of the composer’s songs, posthumously compiled and brought to print by his brother Daniel. The second CD consists of music for soprano and organ from Purcell’s Harmonia Sacra  and includes all the composer’s music for solo organ. One way or another we spend a long time in the company of soprano Jill Feldman, and, while she is a very experienced and respected early music soprano, I have some reservations about her voice production which I found laid bare in these performances. She is capable of a beautifully pure sound – as, for example, at the beginning of Music for a while  – but more often produces a more opaque sound, which I find less attractive. Although never less than expressive in her singing, I also find that she can sometimes undercut notes. Having said that, if you don’t share my reservations, there is much to enjoy in these recordings, where Ms Feldman is very ably supported by three of the leading instrumentalists in their fields. The performances can certainly never be accused of lacking energy and vitality, and it is good to hear some unfamiliar numbers as well as the established Purcell favourites. In the second CD of the set Davitt Moroney plays a late 17th-century organ by Thomas Dallam in the parish church of Saint-Miliau in Guimiliau in Finistère, which produces a wonderfully authentic range of sounds in the voluntaries as well as in the accompaniments to the various hymns from Harmonia Sacra. I think, too, that Ms Feldman sounds more convincing in this repertoire and this acoustic. It was while listening to this second CD that I found myself yet again wondering at the remarkable contribution made to English music by Henry Purcell.

D. James Ross

Pierre Hantaï harpsichord
78:00
Mirare MIR326
K. 27, 87, 124, 157, 205, 211, 238, 252, 253, 277, 388, 401, 474, 475, 547, 551

You have to admire anyone who takes on ‘the complete’ anything, let alone Scarlatti’s 555-stoned obelisk. A weakness of the package is the use of three nevertheless very good generic essays which tell us nothing about the specific sonatas in this programme other than by pure luck. Massive and more than counter-balancing strengths are the programming – a mix of earlier and later pieces – and the superb playing. In my doodles, I noted ‘business-like but with panache’, which I’m happy to stay with. In an ideal world, a variety of instruments might be used but I’m not at all unhappy with what I’ve just heard. In the end, the music itself is what you remember.

David Hansell

Virtuoso liturgical music from the early 17th century
Profeti della Quinta, Elam Rotem
66:29
Glossa GCD922516

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t is immediately obvious that this recording, much to its advantage, features a fine church (rather than a chamber) organ and further investigation reveals this to be a 17th-century original by Antegnati, no less. Six of the 23 tracks are, in fact, organ solos so we hear not only the accompanying stops and the rich chorus sound but also two delicious and very characteristic solo effects: head straight for tracks 16 and 22.

If I’m honest, the vocal music, though sung with exquisite taste and impressive agility, is of less intrinsic interest, though the manuscript and its context are fascinating. Essay and translations are in Eng/Fre/Ger and the source is available on IMSLP.

David Hansell

Yoann Moulin harpsichord & virginal
61:15
Encelade ECL1601

[dropcap]L[/dropcap]et me immediately draw attention to the lovely instruments used for this recording, an Italian style harpsichord (2012) and a virginal made in 2009 after a 1626 Italian original now in the Leipzig instrument museum. They are not elaborate instruments, but this means that their clear voices throw emphasis on to the content of the music. And in the case of Frescobaldi (rather more admired than played, I suspect) this is no bad thing. Most of the programme is drawn from Il primo libro di Toccate, including the substantial (to say the least) Folia, Romanesca  and Passacagli  variations. In addition, there are two pieces from Ricercari et Canzoni franzese  and one toccata from the second book.

The playing is sensitive and thoughtful, giving Frescobaldi his full status as a master – a disc for a quiet and pensive evening rather than a rabble-rouser. The booklet features some rather odd photographs and notes in French and English – a valiant translator’s attempt to convey the essence of the flowery original.

David Hansell