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Home , Harpsichord, Thomas Campion

Tomas Luis de Victoria print. One or two other odd moments enunciation adds charm rather than TENEBRAE RESPONSORIES may have arisen from misprints in humour (witness Sorrow, stay—'peety, Pro Cantione Antiqua, directed by the edition that was used for the peety, peety' and 'no ope, no elp'); Bruno Turner recording. JEROMEROCHE but in all other respects this is magical Harmoma Mundi 1C 065-99 800 singing. Claude Deboves' contribu- tions on the are serviceable if not Victoria's Tenebrae responsories were outstanding (a lew tangles in Forlorne intended to form part of a strictly pre- , GAILLARDES, AIRS, hope). As for the recorders, there are scribed sequence of several liturgical ALLEMANDES ET FANTAISIE many delightful moments of ensemble elements: the psalms, chanted lessons Collectif de Musique Ancienne de and a good deal of natural elegance. and responsories of Matins on the Paris for dancing, perhaps? three last days of Holy Week. Thus, to Calliope CAL 1627 string them together in a concert per- Two recently issued anthologies of Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/em/article/9/3/391-b/419213 by guest on 29 September 2021 formance is to create an artiticial John Dowland Elizabethan airs and lute music per- juxtaposition of like with like, and to AYRES AND LUTE-LESSONS formed by James Bowman and Robert ignore the potent contrasts inherent in James Bowman (countertenor), Spencer offer fewer surprises. The first the liturgical scheme. However, Robert Spencer (lute) is devoted exclusively to the work ol Victoria himself provided elements of Saga 5449 Dowland and draws upon all five of the printed song collections, mixing contrast in his settings, by varying the , Antony scoring (so that the second item in the familiar with the lesser-known; every group of three responsories is Holborne,John Danyel, there are also four lute pieces, includ- written for a higher-pitched en- ing the Lachrimae Pavan and Semper semble), by reducing the number of ELIZABETHAN AYRES AND DANCES dolens. The second (more recent) voices in the verse sections, and not James Bowman (countertenor), record covers a wider range, with least by his passionate declamation of Robert Spencer (lute) songs by Campion, Danyel and these emotive texts. Saga 5470 Rosseter, and dances by the last of these three as well as by Antony Pro Cantione Antiqua—here re- For those who like their Dowland wilh Holborne. duced to six singers—also supply the the minimum ol ostentation, a new necessary variety through their well- anthology by the Collectif de Musique Bowman is not at his best in the judged choice of tempos and Ancienne de Paris may well give a Dowland songs: high notes often dynamics. Their ensemble and diction good deal of pleasure. Pride of place sound uncomfortably high and many are superb, phrases are beautifully is given to eight of the 'Divers other upward leaps are far from clean. The shaped and the sound is well Pavans, Galiards, and Almands' from words suffer too—few of the texts recorded. Since there is usually only Lachrimae, played here on recorders receive quite the declamatory treat- one singer to a part the effect is more rather than the more usual consort of ment they require, and there is a intimate than that which would be . In addition, there are four general absence of subtlety and produced by choral performance. miscellaneous lute songs and two lute pathos; even brighter songs such as Allocating the top line to altos rather lessons. Most of the performances are Fine knacks for ladies lack the necessary than trebles means that the music charmingly relaxed and informal— degree of wit and levity. The second sounds a 4th lower than the written which is to say that they make excel- record is a good deal more satis- pitch, a transposition in line with the lent background music as well as factory in most of these respects, no chiavette theory which preserves the being, in a modest way, spirited and doubt owing in part to the com- distinction between the high (here entertaining interpretations; and that posers' less demanding musical lang- AATB) and normal (here ATTB) is precisely what this music requires. uages as well as the generally lower . The liturgical repetitions Sparrows chirp in the background, tessituras chosen. There is still a good inherent in the responsory form are cars rumble past: maybe not stuff for deal of understatement: even in as fully observed. purists, but an integral part of what is, strong a story as Campion's It fell on a above all, a friendly record. summer's day, Bowman seems deter- My sole substantial regret is that the mined not to get too involved. Here texts are given only in a German Shining above all else is the voice of too, the words are not always as easy translation. One might query some of Dominique Visse, billed as 'haute- to make out as one would have liked, the accidental readings: for example, contre' but virtually sexless in its adol- and texts would have made a useful the chromatic first bar of Caligaverunt escent purity. This is an uncanny addition to the sleeve notes. By way of is controversial, to say the least, since noise, almost spectral, magnificently compensation, however, Robert Victoria seems to have been careful in poised, placed and controlled, flexible Spencer's thoughtful accompani- placing accidentals in the original and effortless. The odd infelicity of

EARLY MUSIC JULY 1981 391 University of Edinburgh OF RECENT RECORD RELEASE DUO & DUETS hy U'. A. MOZART (SCH 801 ) played hy Luc!, Carolan Rr Peter Williams

Illustrated. descr~ptivehooklet ~ncluded.£5 .OO L p&p OTHER RECORDS A VAILABLE XIUSIC FOR & VIRGISALS

hy JOHN BULL (SCH 741 1) Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/em/article/9/3/391-b/419213 by guest on 29 September 2021 played hy Peter Williams Illustrated. descriptive douhle rleeve. £3.50 pap PRELUDES FOR ORGAN ft HAKPSICHOKD by J. S. HACH (SCH 742) played b!. Peter \\'~lliams Illustrated. dewriptivc douhle sleeve. £3.50 a p&p ALL 3 RECORDS FOR ONLY dE10.00 + p&p All music recorded at St. Cecilia's Hall. Edinburgh. and played on instruments in the Collection. SCH 801 Two manual ~ichordby P. Taskin. 1769 (the French harpcichord on which most modern "French" copies are based) Two manual harpsichord by P. Taskin. 1784 (described in Eorlv hlrrsic. 1979. pp. 473-482) by J. A. Hass. 1763 Grand by A. Backers. 1772 (the oldest extant English fortepiano) SCH 74 1 Single manual harpsichord by I. . 1637 Vireinals hv S. Ke~nc.I668 (the first thorouehly restored English virginal<) SCH 742 English chamber orcan. c I690 (thou~htto he by Fnther Smith) Sinelc manual harprichord by J. A. Hass. 1764 (helicved to he the only restored antique German harpsichord in the U.K.) 0 THER PUBLICA TIOhrS TECHNICAL DRAWINGS Series-111-prclgre\\. now comprising the following: 1 Ttvo manual harpwhord. P. Ta\kin. 1769 la C)rrpnal ctand Inr 17hu I a\kin harp\~chnrtl 2 Clai-ichnrd. 1. A. 113cc. 1763 3 Clavichord. Anonymou~German. r 1700 5 Two rnanual harpwhord. I. Ruckerc. 16.78 h Vireinal\ at Quart P~tch.I. Ruckers. 162'4 POSTCARDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS FULLY ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE (f1.00 + p&p) Ordrrc to o~ld.hirrhrrirr/i~rrnu~io~i,h~n~: PURLICATIONS OFFICER THE FRIENDS OF ST. CECILIA'S HALL ST. CECILIA'S HALL. COWGATE iClarket Street. Guildfwd , EDINRURGH EH I ILJ. SCOTLAND (U.K.) Surrev,./ Englund ments and more extrovert solo play- scribes his music as not so much 'com- ing on both records are excellent and posed' as 'manufactured', an expres- can be warmly recommended. At their sion which is particularly apt for most bargain prices, the quality ot record- ol the music on this record. ing and pressing of the Saga discs is Not quite all, though. Vecchi's So more than acceptable. JOHN MILSOM ben mi c'ha bon tempo became well FLUTES known and itself attracted several after Bressan, Hotteterre, Grenser * arrangements, but in its original form La Mantovana as recorded here it is a highly ALTO ITALIAN AIRS AND DANCES OF THE EARLY polished, if somewhat bland, example RECORDER '. BAROQUE of the light . And Cipriano de fy after Schell , London Group, directed Rore's distinguished madrigal Anchor Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/em/article/9/3/391-b/419213 by guest on 29 September 2021 by James Tyler che col partire is preserved intact but for "g» Inexpensive student model ' RCA RL 25199 the addition of embellishments by ' T baroque flutes with < Rognoni to the top line (sung with •t$ near-perfect intonation , The early 17th century in Italy was a commendable agility by Paul Elliott). M ^ Enquiries also welcomed on formative period for many of the Notwithstanding their superior ; 'A wind instruments instrumental genres we now take for pedigree, these pieces fit in reason- granted—the sonata, , ably well with the popular settings, ROBERT and , for example. However, not & though the sleeve note exaggerates in SANDERS all instrumental music of the time can & suggesting that everything on the Maker of Historical be described as 'progressive'. Settings & of what may broadly be termed record would have been 'widely Woodwind known and appreciated by all levels of 'popular' material continue a tradi- •§£ 929 Danby Road Italian society'. Less happy is the in- tion which Hourished in the previous 4A Ithaca, New York 14850 century, and most of the pieces on this clusion of a pavana by Farina, an ex- record are of this kind. They take as patriate Italian working in Dresden. *«fcjl their starting point a melody, or Although he used Italian titles his simply a chord progression, well consort music was published in known at the time in Italy and indeed Germany, and it is steeped in the in some cases throughout Europe. traditions of that country. A large battery of instruments is COLIN Tunes such as // ballo di Mantua, La assembled and played with expertise Bertazzina, Va pur superba va and and panache. Plucked strings of grounds like the spagnoletta form the BOOTH course play a leading role, with James Italian equivalent to familiar English Early Keyboard Tyler ebullient as ever on lute, titles like Setlinger's Round, The Carman's , and , Instruments Whistle, Fortune my Foe and The Hunt's (est. 1971) Up, which were popular enough to be the last-named giving the record a called for in broadside ballads or particularly authentic Italian flavour. A select range of copies and referred to in Shakespeare's plays. The now familiar sound of baroque near-copies, including: Their fame gave rise to countless bowed strings is occasionally sup- Single-manual and Two-manual adaptations and arrangements. Such plemented by more exotic effects, harpsichords after Christian Zell creations could take the form of notably the swish of Joseph Skeaping's (Hamburg 1728); Widely- lirone, like a soft-bristled carpet- acclaimed Italian harpsichords highly sophisticated transformations from an original of 1533; A (Byrd's settings of the English titles sweeper. It is all very enjoyable and simple harpsichord derived from above being outstanding examples), evocative, though inevitably some- Ruckers originals, at an excep- but the overwhelming majority are what lacking in durability because of tionally attractive price. straightforward workmanlike affairs, the limited nature of the original Also , obtainable direct, designed to satisfy the demands of an material. WARWICK EDWARDS or from the Bradford and London Early Music Shops. apparently insatiable amateur market. The reader need feel no shame if he 1 Woodview fails to recognize the names of such St. Thomas Street An editorial error led to the attribu- as Gasparo Zannetti, Carlo WELLS. Somerset tion to Cererols of one mass too few in England Calvi and Santino Garsi. One well- Anthony F. Carver's review in April 0749/75950 known arranger of our own time de- EM. Four masses are extant.

EARLY MUSIC JULY 1981 A9A