COMPOSERS: Campion,Corkine,Ferrabosco,Ford,Jones,Morley,Pilkington & Rosseter
LABELS: ATMA
ALBUM TITLE: Lute Songs
WORKS: Works by Ferrabosco, Campion, Morley, Corkine, Ford, Jones, Pilkington & Rosseter
PERFORMER: Charles Daniels (tenor), Nigel North (lute)
CATALOGUE NO: ACD 2 2548
The liner notes to this astutely-assembled anthology quote Castiglione’s enthusiastic ‘thumbs-up’ to the art of lute song in The Courtier: ‘it addeth to the words such grace and strength, that it is a great wonder.’ Those long familiar with the artistry of Charles Daniels and Nigel North will take performance ‘grace and strength’ as read. They might, however, find Daniels’s pronunciation a great (not to say disconcerting) wonder indeed! Think John McCormack as schooled by a Chaucer-reading elocution teacher from the midlands. Garnish with a dash of Cumbrian, a pinch of Scottish Borders – and seek the recipe in vain in the CD booklet which nowhere alludes to what is presumably a stab at period accent. The musical values of course are impeccable, an easy rapport between the performers replicated in their unforced identification with text and music. Their pacing, poise and playfulness suggest an ultimately self-recommending disc; but given the ‘accent’, it’s essential that you ‘try before you buy’. Paul Riley
Ferrabosco, Campion, Morley, Corkine, Ford, Jones, Pilkington & Rosseter
The liner notes to this astutely-assembled anthology quote Castiglione’s enthusiastic ‘thumbs-up’ to the art of lute song in The Courtier: ‘it addeth to the words such grace and strength, that it is a great wonder.’ Those long familiar with the artistry of Charles Daniels and Nigel North will take performance ‘grace and strength’ as read. They might, however, find Daniels’s pronunciation a great (not to say disconcerting) wonder indeed! Think John McCormack as schooled by a Chaucer-reading elocution teacher from the midlands.
Published: January 20, 2012 at 4:05 pm