Category: Recording

Categories
Recording

Monteverdi: Madrigali, vol. 3 Venezia

Floral design

Les Arts Florissants, Paul Agnew
74:44
Les Arts Florissants HAF 8905278

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]n the past couple of years I’ve twice experienced – the right word in this case, I think – the vocal ensemble from Les Arts Florissants performing selections of Monteverdi madrigals at the Ambronay Festival, the review of the 2015 concert being on this website. Remarkable above all for their sheer intensity and compelling commitment, I would count these among the very finest musical events I’ve attended in recent years. The Ambronay concerts were a spin-off from a complete cycle of the madrigals given in Paris, where a selection was recorded for release across three CDs. It can only be regretted that the whole cycle was not recorded, but we must be eternally grateful for what we do have.

This final volume is devoted to extracts from the culmination of Monteverdi’s path-breaking madrigal output. Nowhere of course does that description apply more than in these last books, Seven and Eight, the latter bearing the title Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi, published respectively in 1619 and 1638. In both, but above all in Book 8, we find Monteverdi breaking through any boundaries still remaining after the radical developments initially introduced in Book 4. Thus from Book 7 we have ‘Con che soavità’ and the famous ‘Lettera amorosa’, both solos rather than concerted madrigals, the first sung by Miriam Allan with perfect technique – gorgie  are splendidly articulated – and a mesmerizing, rapt sensuality that employs messa di voce  to stunning effect. The long love letter in the stile rappresentazione  is equally compelling, delivered by alto Lucile Richardot with absorbed and absorbing attention, the lines sustained by beautiful tone and insightful vocal acting. There are two lighter pieces here, too, the infectious ‘Chiome d’oro’, given a deliciously light touch by Allen and Mhairi Lawson, while in the hands of Allan and Paul Agnew the irresistible Ballo: Tirsi e Clori  exudes sweet pastoral charm in the early verses before the 6-part ensemble enters to carry the madrigal to an exuberant conclusion.

The madrigals of Book 8 are divided between those devoted to war and to those that concern love, the selection here starting off with the introductory ‘Altri canti d’Amor’ (Let others sing the sweet charms). The opening, sung with languorous flow, is harshly challenged by the superb bass Lisandro Abadie, his announcement that he will sing of ‘harsh encounters and daring battles’ introducing a fiercely virtuoso account of the remainder of the madrigal, in which Monteverdi employs the new concitato  style. The war part of the book is in fact as much metaphor for the war of love as literal, but in the final piece the two are combined in Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, effectually a chamber opera based on an episode from Tasso’s Gerusalemme liberata  that here comes to compelling dramatic life. The major weight of the work falls on the narrator (Testo), sung by Agnew. If his vibrato is occasionally a problem and I have heard the role more strongly projected, there is no doubting the interpretative insight and superbly rhetorical delivery Agnew brings to the role. He is excellently supported by Hannah Morrison and Sean Clayton in the relatively minor contributions given the protagonists, the former being intensely moving in her final dying words, delivered with a heartbreaking diminuendo.

Other extracts from Book 8 include the ravishingly lovely ‘Dolcissimo usignola’ and ‘Lamento de la ninfa’, a performance by Morrison, Agnew, Clayton and Cyril Costano of touching simplicity that goes straight to the heart, the inexorable ground bass relentlessly underpinning the misery of the abandoned nymph. A marvellous, life-enhancing CD of some of the greatest music the 17th century has to offer.

Brian Robins

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01N4BXCTA&asins=B01N4BXCTA&linkId=e1ef60847ae237aa9f73c363f88b5764&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=5977346&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01N4BXCTA&asins=B01N4BXCTA&linkId=4d50459039f8cc6364397a9142bed442&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Discovering the Piano

Modern floral

Linda Nicholson reproduction 1730 Cristofori-Ferrini pianoforte
71:39
Passacaille 1024
Music by Alberti, Giustini, Handel, Paradisi, Platti, D. Scarlatti & Soler

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t is not clear whether the ‘discovering’ of the title relates to the early days of the piano or to the specific instrument used for this splendid CD. The latter is certainly something of a discovery for at least this listener. I imagine most readers of EMR will be aware that the piano was the invention of Bartolomeo Cristofori somewhere around 1690. During the first two decades of the 18th century his invention gradually became established and known in musical circles; after his death in 1732, building continued under his assistant and eventual successor, Giovanni Ferrini. The present recital is played on a copy by Denzil Wraight of an instrument built by Ferrini in 1730. There is an excellent introduction to it by Wraight in the booklet. It was once owned by Queen Maria Barbara of Spain, who bequeathed it to the great castrato Farinelli, it apparently becoming his favourite instrument. There is therefore a direct link to the Domenico Scarlatti and Soler sonatas included on the present CD.

Like other Cristofori pianos I’ve heard, this example is distinguished by its rounded warmth of tone and richness of bass, which – as the Scarlatti Sonata in G, K.547 amply demonstrates – can take on a chunky meatiness when required. Again, as is customary with Cristofori, there is an overall unity to the sound across the gamut, quite different to the deliberate contrast of tonal colours found in later fortepianos.

The repertoire chosen by Linda Nicholson to show off the instrument is an interesting collection that with one exception was composed relatively shortly after the ‘birth’ of the instrument. The exception is of course Handel, the well-known Suite in F (HWV 427) having been published in a set of eight in 1720. Nicholson mounts a convincing argument that Handel was almost certainly aware of Cristofori’s instruments, which he would have met with during his sojourn in Italy, conjecturing that the ‘cembalo’ part of the famous competition with Domenico Scarlatti may even have been played on the Cristofori owned by Cardinal Ottoboni. The works by the lesser-known composers, a Sonata in G minor of 1732 by Ludovico Giustini, one of the first works specifically written for the piano, two-movement sonatas by P. D. Paradisi and Alberti, and Platti’s Sonata in G minor, op 1, no. 4, all occupy mid-century galant territory to a greater or lesser degree, all sounding thoroughly idiomatic on this Cristofori-Ferrini.

That they do is in no small measure due to the performances of Linda Nicholson. Never one to seek celebrity status, Nicholson has nevertheless long been one of our finest early keyboard players. Here her playing is informed by clean, precise fingerwork and a technique capable of encompassing the most virtuosic passagework, as she demonstrably proves in the Presto e alla breve (II) from the Platti sonata, to cite but one example. But above all it is the sheer musicality of Nicholson’s playing that makes the CD such a joy. Tempos throughout are beautifully judged, rubato is judiciously employed and there is a sensitivity and unfailing response to the instrument’s characteristics and capabilities. I’ll restrict myself to a single, but exceptional example, Scarlatti’s Sonata in B minor, K. 87). Here the nocturnal mystery of the piece attains a magically intimate quality, the playing perfectly weighted and dynamically graded to produce a performance of compelling sensitivity. There is much else that could be written in similarly glowing terms, but I’d rather urge readers to discover this exceptional disc for themselves.

Brian Robins

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01MQGYVVZ&asins=B01MQGYVVZ&linkId=e27746f158d4675920bea26247651940&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?artnum=5671176&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01MQGYVVZ&asins=B01MQGYVVZ&linkId=e4f4748c87370e432cd8431b62ecd9c5&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Cavalli: Requiem

Ensemble Polyharmonique, Alexander Schneider
56:08
Raumklang RK3601
+ Motets by Alessandro Grandi

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]n his death in 1667, Francesco Cavalli left behind an eight-part Requiem as well as instructions on how it ought it feature in his funeral service. It is like something out of the plot of Amadeus, but in fact it was not unusual for composers to write their own musical envoi. It certainly guaranteed that the music was generally of the highest quality, as they assembled all the skills they had accrued throughout their lives for this one last attempt at immortality. Certainly Cavalli’s serene and exquisite Requiem  – firmly in the stilo antico  – has this definitive feel about it. Cavalli’s instructions call upon the entire instrumental and vocal forces which could be mustered by San Marco in Venice, where he was working, a vast army including no less than three organists.

By contast, singing one to a part with minimal instrumental support in the form of arpa doppia, viola da gamba and organ, the singers of the Ensemble Polyharmonique nonetheless give a passionate and moving account of Cavalli’s music, interweaving motets by his older compatriot Alessandro Grandi into a powerful programme. It would be wonderful some time to hear the work given an epic performance such as its composer envisaged. The recent spotlight that has been turned on Cavalli’s church music has revealed a composer as skilled in this sphere as he was in the realm of opera, and this Requiem  is every bit as fine as the Missa concertata and vespers music which have featured on recent CDs.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01ISPWL6E&asins=B01ISPWL6E&linkId=5b44654a5c9faf0b21c110e8038e330c&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=4235259&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01ISPWL6E&asins=B01ISPWL6E&linkId=2e0f78b89c7384c398f9aa7a55713505&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

In nomine: Enfers et Paradis…

Dark green flowers

dans le paysage musical européen autour de 1600
Les Harpies
65:10
Encelade ECL1502

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he star of this CD is undoubtedly the Renaissance organ of Saint-Savin in Lavedan, which not only offers the aural treat of a kaleidoscopic variety of quite extreme stops and nightingale song, but also we are assured the visual treats of grotesque masks with sprung eyes and jaws all operated by the organist. I recall seeing a Baroque organ in Germany where trumpet-playing angels not only raised their trumpets to support the instrument’s trumpet stop, but also clapped their wings to thunderous effect, and this explains the loud extraneous noises during the organ items here, which I originally assumed to be rather random percussion. Built in 1557, this extraordinary instrument has now been restored to its original condition complete with the features I have mentioned as well as trompe l’oeils  of the saints. Surely there is a message here for the church of today concerned at dramatically falling numbers of church-goers! Famous for their iconoclastic and energetic performances, Les Harpies and guest Harpie, Matthieu Boutineau, with Le Choeur des Huguenots take us on a colourful tour of music from around 1600 with often only tenuous connections with their stated themes. But who cares! This is highly entertaining stuff, presented inventively and imaginatively, and played and sung with engaging panache and honesty. And Saint-Savin-en-Lavedan is now firmly on my holiday checklist! For organ nerds, full details of the restoration projects which have brought the organ back to its current rude health as well as details of its stops are included, and for once I can begin to share in their enthusiasm.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B06W56H46G&asins=B06W56H46G&linkId=952ab1d25848cf5be0728e2d7a9b8c43&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Amante Franzoni: Vespers for the Feast of Santa Barbara

Floral design

Accademia degli invaghiti, Concerto Palatino, Francesco Moi
63:04
Brilliant Classics 95344

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]mante Franzoni, a contemporary of Claudio Monteverdi, worked as a composer and musician for the Gonzaga family in Mantua, and the present recording is a reconstruction of Vespers for the Feast of Santa Barbara, using Franzoni’s choral settings, instrumental inserts and relevant plainchant. The performers give a nod in the direction of Franzoni’s more illustrious contemporary by opening the proceedings with Monteverdi’s familiar setting of Domine ad adiuvandum  featuring the famous Orfeo  toccata. This invites a comparison between Franzoni’s music and Monteverdi’s, and throughout the service we are treated to music for cori spezzati, smaller groups and instruments which is certainly in the same league as Monteverdi. Given the fact that Franzoni spent his whole working life in the employ of the wealthy and demanding Gonzaga family, we should hardly be surprised at the high quality of his music, and it is perhaps a result of the prominence of Monteverdi that the likes of Franzoni have been overlooked. There is some lovely singing and playing on this CD, although occasionally a little more passion would have helped things on their way. Apart from the fact that the recording was made in 2010 in Mantua, we are given no details of the recording venue, and to my ears a little bit more resonance would have given Franzoni’s music more of an epic sound such as it would have had in Mantua’s Basilica of Santa Barbara where Franzoni worked. I know of at least one attempt to present Monteverdi’s Vespers music in the context of a service for Saint Barbara, and it is encouraging to see this Italian ensemble exploring the music of a relatively unknown master rather than just giving us yet another account of the Monteverdi.

D. James Ross

Buy this recording at amazon.co.uk

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=4297468&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01LXIKCPT&asins=B01LXIKCPT&linkId=c54478f8b672603e41de3f02848e9d66&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Fasolo: Annuale Opera Ottava, Venezia 1645

Floral design

Luca Scandali, Bella Gerit
76:35
Tactus TC590701

[dropcap]F[/dropcap]asolo’s Annuale Opera Ottava is essentially a handbook for organists offering music appropriate for services throughout the year. The present CD offers liturgical reconstructions, ordinary and propers, for three types of mass: the Missa in Dominicis diebus, the Missa in duplicibus diebus  and the Missa Beatae Mariae Virginis. Fasolo’s music, played by Luca Scandali on a characterful 1547 organ by Luca di Bernardino in the Chiesa di San Domenico in Cortona, alternates with appropriate chant sung by the Ensemble Bella Gerit. The main star of the CD is the venerable 16th-century organ, which offers an intriguing range of stops. It is imaginatively presented by Luca Scandali, who manages to entice the most gentle and almost strident sounds from the instrument. The chant is beautifully unanimous, and has the pleasant detachment of working clergy perhaps almost over-familiar with its phrases. The only slight fly in the ointment is the audible difference in background sound as we switch from organ solo to the voices and back again – clearly the two were recorded separately and edited together. Fasolo’s publication appeared in the wake of Frescobaldi’s much more famous Fiori Musicali  of 1635, but in its subtle differences from it suggests that local liturgical traditions and musical practices were still very much respected. Rather than pick a publication like Frescobaldi’s off the shelves, at least some local organists decided to compile rival publications in imitation but reflecting their own specific talents and the traditions within which they operated.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01M8NHJNA&asins=B01M8NHJNA&linkId=dace9d467ae232ab612c1401ed1ae4a3&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”>]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=5378174&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01M8NHJNA&asins=B01M8NHJNA&linkId=1df9d2b96717bfebeb8f7ce38b9bec72&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Classical Vienna: Music for Guitar & Piano

Pale green early floral

James Akers romantic guitar, Gary Branch fortepiano
67:47
resonus res10182
Music by Carulli, Diabelli, Giuliani & Moscheles

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his charming CD takes us evocatively into the Viennese salon of the early 19th century with a programme of domestic repertoire for guitar and fortepiano. It is a genre of which I was hitherto completely ignorant, and the surprise is how well the sounds of period fortepiano and romantic guitar blend, a powerful argument if such needs to be made for the correct use of period instruments. This might incidentally be the moment where I lament the demise of the Finchcocks Museum, where this recording was made, making it the last in a noble tradition. Knowing nothing of the circumstances, I feel that its almost unique assemblage of period keyboard should perhaps be the sort of resource that should be saved for the nation. The 1826 Conrad Graf fortepiano featured here offers a delightful range of tone qualities, while James Akers’ original 1820 Saumier guitar and a 2015 Panormo copy have a distinctive and gentle timbre. Incidentally both the fortepiano and the guitars also get a chance to shine in solo repertoire. With the exception of Diabelli (he of the variations) and the ubiquitous Moscheles, who seems to have sat at the centre of music-making in this era like a spider at the centre of a Europe-wide web, the other two composers represented, Ferdinando Carulli and Mauro Giuliani, are unfamiliar. Their music is jaunty and tuneful rather than profound, but understandably this was the sort of repertoire the Viennese who attended operettas and waltzed the night away at the city’s year-round balls wanted to play and hear in their drawing rooms. As in previous programmes, James Akers demonstrates great musicality and an awesome technique, while his partner Gary Branch handles the various features of the Graf fortepiano with panache, making it sing beautifully or almost whisper depending on the requirements of the music. The intimate acoustic of Finchcocks is probably just right for this repertoire, and if you feel rich enough you can plan your own concerts and recordings there as the property is currently for sale.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01N59V9BB&asins=B01N59V9BB&linkId=7e0d1ef5a082482f8cf6ac2cd348631a&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=2736105&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01N59V9BB&asins=B01N59V9BB&linkId=e9f148db355e8c485a2c5105b2ec20e7&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Beneath the Northern Star

Medieval floral

The rise of English polyphony 1270-1430
The Orlando Consort
72:13
CDA 68132
Alanus, Byttering, Chirbury, Damett, Dunstaple, Excetre, Gervays, Power & anon

[dropcap]S[/dropcap]etting aside my objection to the ‘Northern Star’ reference – there was ground-breaking polyphony of superlative quality being composed at this time further north in the British Isles – this CD is a useful look at the roots of English polyphony. It throws a new spotlight on some unfamiliar and mainly anonymous English music from the period immediately prior to the Old Hall Manuscript, although the notes are vexingly vague about the sources of this earliest repertoire.

I have often had reservations about the sound the Orlando Consort produces, and here too particularly with the earliest repertoire there is an annoying degree of vibrato in the inner voices, while the music seems to be divided between ‘sweet’ music, which receives gentle performances, and ‘lively’ music, which is given altogether rougher treatment. There are entire pieces here where the blend is never truly established, and I find it hard to tolerate this, let alone begin to enjoy it. Having said that, there is a general clarity of articulation and a pleasing parity of balance in more animated sections. With the slightly later repertoire from Old Hall onwards, the situation is generally happier, and the expected music of Power and Dunstaple is complemented with less familiar repertoire by Byttering, Gervays, Damett and Alanus. This is an informative survey of the roots of English polyphony, but to judge it at the highest level, I do have reservations about some of the performances. I know that the Orlando Consort has a dedicated and enthusiastic following, and their fans will not hesitate to invest in this CD, and a fair proportion of the works here are simply not available elsewhere.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01MTP8D6A&asins=B01MTP8D6A&linkId=6f22b74469ed87f31a3d25938fb7844f&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=6065684&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01MTP8D6A&asins=B01MTP8D6A&linkId=45dd3d92381f942d2fda98c18b11ccbf&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

Azahar

Modern floral

La Tempête, Simon-Pierre Bestion
82:29
Alpha Classics Alpha 261
Machaut: Messe de Notre-Dame, Alfonso X El Sabio: Cantigas de Santa Maria
+ Stravinsky: Messe, Ohana: Cantigas

[dropcap]I[/dropcap] have to admit that my heart sank when I looked at the paperwork with this CD and read that the word Azahar is the Spanish word for orange blossom, that the programme was a mash-up of Machaut, Alfonso X el Sabio, Stravinsky and Maurice Ohana, and that the programme note was in the form of an interview in which director Simon–Pierre Bestion declared of Machaut’s Messe de Notre Dame, ‘You can take extraordinary liberties with this Mass – it’s so modern after all.’ Well no it’s not – it’s from the 14th century. His further assertion that his approach is ‘neo-classical rather than historical’ and that he likes ‘disorientating the listener’ further depressed me. Time to put on the CD, and in fact things are not as entirely demented as promised by the notes. The gritty, choral post-Pérès account of the Machaut Messe de Notre Dame  with some kind of unspecified growling bass instrument (possibly a ‘basson ancien’), and tutti passages supported by early brass and drums is mostly effective, if a little implausible. The same epic treatment of Alfonso’s Cantigas de Santa Maria  is equally effective and implausible, and it is ironic that the music treated with the most respect is the most recent, the Messe  by Igor Stravinsky and the rather iconoclastic settings of the Cantigas  by Maurice Ohana. Putting to one side these last two elements of the recording, which are probably the most successful aspects though of less interest to EMR readers, your reaction to the presentation of the early music here depends on what you are looking for from ‘authentic’ performers. I have to admit that a director whose self-declared approach is ‘neo-classical rather than historical’ is unlikely to satisfy my requirements, and the allure of epic, pumped-up Machaut, impressive as it occasionally may sound, really ought to be resisted as ‘fake news’. Stepping back from the concoction Bestion is offering here under the Azahar banner, we essentially have two CDs mashed together: a good performance of some relatively good Stravinsky and some generally less good Ohana, and a whole other CD of early music, generally well performed but on steroids and therefore historically implausible. If that’s your kind of thing, go for it, but don’t expect a dinner invitation from me any time soon…

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01N5I0QJV&asins=B01N5I0QJV&linkId=fc49e3dc588ae4ad2d3870a1182479f5&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=6070613&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01N5I0QJV&asins=B01N5I0QJV&linkId=bb8af42ccb73c613beea42842fc010a3&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

Categories
Recording

The celebrated Distin Family

Pale green early floral

The Prince Regent’s Band
55:40
Resonus RES10179

[dropcap]I[/dropcap] fear that mention of ‘the celebrated Distin family’ in polite company nowadays would elicit nothing but blank looks, but in their heyday in the mid-19th century they were quite the thing, touring Europe and America to great acclaim. I warmed to them when I read that they began commenced their stellar career with a tour of the Moray coast ending in Inverness. Springing from the Prince Regent’s Band, George IV’s elite brass ensemble, John Distin astutely formed a family dynasty of brass players similar to a Victorian version of the Jacksons or the Osmonds, who – taking advantage of contemporary developments in brass instruments – took the world by storm.

A turning point for the group was their discovery and espousal of the newly invented Saxhorn, an instrument which featured prominently in their programmes as well as on the present CD. The new Prince Regent’s Band comprises five players with a wealth of period brass experience who populate the brass sections of a myriad period instrument ensembles. The repertoire they have recorded here is by necessity only speculatively associated with the Distins, and ranges from pretty basic oompah music to subtle compositions by John Distin, often in arrangements by the group members, and altogether more adventurous repertoire such as arrangements of Verdi, Handel and Arne. I have to admit that the occasionally slight failures in tuning particularly in the cornets disturbed me – is this really entirely the fault of the old instruments? In some pieces the melody cornet is sharp at the top end of its range and in tune lower down – is it naïve to think that a bit of judicious ‘pulling out’ or ‘lipping down’ might have helped? These slight flaws are more than offset by the delightfully warm sounds of a consort Saxhorns, and the tasteful playing of the ensemble avoids any potential ennuie. Helpfully the large collection of instruments the band members play is illustrated at the centre of a very informative essay by Anneke Scott, although the group photo with players clutching an ophicleide and a trombone slightly confuses the issue. Surely your first album is more than adequate excuse for a new group publicity snap?! Notwithstanding, the members of The Prince Regent’s Band are to be warmly congratulated on this enterprising exploration of an almost entirely forgotten area of musical history.

D. James Ross

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=infocentral-21&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B01MDT3KCJ&asins=B01MDT3KCJ&linkId=d22536cabd82b156365f094a8b221c18&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]

[iframe src=”http://www.jpc-partner.de/link.php?partner=ngr&artnum=5757181&bg=ffffff&tc=000000&lc=e5671d&s=120&t=1&i=1&b=1″ width=”120″ height=”214″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″]

[iframe style=”width:120px;height:240px;” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=earlymusicrev-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01MDT3KCJ&asins=B01MDT3KCJ&linkId=7c1db523e78ef36da85b313143ae5a89&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true”]