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Music
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The
Ladyes Delight Recordings such as this—and many others by the Baltimore Consort—remind us where many of our American folk music traditions come from, and reveal just how strongly connected we still are to European traditions many centuries old. The Elizabethan songs and dances on this recording are taken from several sources and they exemplify music that would have been heard in taverns, homes, ballrooms, and, in the case of "O Mistris Mine," even Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. The arrangements feature all sorts of instruments—viol, lute, cittern, bandora—the same types that were often used in performances for Queen Elizabeth I. The playing—and singing on a few of the tracks—is consistently excellent. But most amazing is the stunning virtuoso flute playing of Chris Norman, the world's foremost master of the wooden flute. —David Vernier |
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Custer
LaRue Sins the Daemon Lover Traditional folk ballads from America, Scotland, and England. The well-known and talented early music ensemble, Baltimore Consort, does the instrumentals. LaRue does a good job with the vocals and her voice is well suited to the music. —Mark Henderson |
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The
Mad Buckgoat: Ancient Music of Ireland Recorded by the Baltimore Consort: Mary Anne Ballard, Mark Cudek, Custer LaRue, Larry Lipkis, Ronn McFarlane & Chris Norman. The Baltimore Consort has well-deserved fame as interpreters of 17th & 18th century popular music, and this CD is a classic example of their exquisite work. —Deborah Torgler |
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Shakespeare's
Musick (Songs & Dances from Shakespeare's Plays) From the very first song to the very last, Philip Pickett and the Musicians of the Globe will have you captivated. The sound is pure and lively and takes the listener on a ride that transcends time. It will open your ears to a whole other world of sound — sound that not only tickles the fancy, but enchants the soul. |
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Monteverdi:
Ottavo Libro dei Madrigali, Vol. 2 Monteverdi's Eighth Book of Madrigals was a milestone, coming late in the then septuagenarian composer's life and offering the fullest flowering of the madrigal form. The two lengthy works collected here fall into the two chief camps in the Eighth Book, martial and amorous madrigals. The former type is represented by Il Cambattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, and the latter by IL Balls delle Ingrate. The singing is extraordinary, warm in the lower ranges (of which the lowest is bright and full indeed) and breathtaking in the accelerated trills and quickly tumbling inner machinations of Monteverdi's agitated style. In addition Rinaldo Alessandrini and Concerto Italiano simply couldn't have come up with a broader attack on the pieces, making them sound operatic, symphonic, and intimate at once. This is not only one of 1998's best vocal CDs, it is, when taken with Allesandrini's Book 1 of the Eighth Book, one of the finest looks at Monteverdi in the realm of recorded music. —Andrew Bartlett |
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Monteverdi:
Vespo della Beata Vergine Monteverdi's Vespers is a monumental collection of musical settings of liturgical texts for a service in honor of the Virgin. It presents a cornucopia of styles, stretching from traditional plainchant to a forward-looking, innovative aesthetic, and bridges the gap between the Renaissance and the beginnings of Baroque musical language. William Christie leads a beautifully sculpted, majestic performance that is responsive to this stylistic profusion but also makes a case for underlying structural cohesion. The instrumental and choral playing is richly textured, while the soloists give exquisitely wrought accounts of Monteverdi's elaborate word painting. —Thomas May |
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Monteverdi:
L'Orfeo History's first great opera—the story of Orpheus descending to Hades to retrieve his bride Eurydice from the dead, only to lose her again—gets a fine performance (the best overall version currently available) from John Eliot Gardiner and his musicians. Anthony Rolfe Johnson performs the title role with all the beautiful sound you'd expect from an Orfeo; he negotiates virtuoso passages flawlessly and sings passionately without overwhelming Monteverdi's music with too much voice. Julianne Baird as Eurydice and Anne Sofie Von Otter in a gripping appearance as the Messenger are the standouts in a cast without a weak link. Everyone involved, including the chorus and orchestra, performs with such energy, beauty, and precision that even long stretches of recitative never pall. —Matthew Westphal |
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Elizabeth's
Music A great CD to listen to if you are an enthusiast of ballads, the lute or old fashioned jigs. This CD really puts you in the alehouses, courts and courtyards of the Elizabethan age. The music is performed well and the voices are very authentic and beautiful. All Elizabethan enthusiasts will enjoy this eclectic collection. —Margaret Harvey |
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