Early, Classical and Beyond

The Art of Melancholy –  Songs by John Dowland
Iestyn Davies; Thomas Dunford
Hyperion CDA68007

Half a century ago a countertenor was still seen as unusual, some would say unnatural. There are now a substantial number of countertenors and I would rate Iestyn Davies as one of the very best, judging from the record under review and also from the recent recording of Handel’s Belshazzar, in which he sings the role of Daniel. He has a strong and very even voice with an excellent sense of pitch. He has himself said that for him the finest countertenor is Andreas Scholl and he has commented on Scholl’s ability to create “a column of sound which doesn’t weaken and stays absolutely even.” The comment fits Davies’ own singing.

Melancholy was a common malady in early 17th-century England. Think of Hamlet or of Jaques in As You Like It. It could become an affectation and it was delightfully parodied in Ben Jonson’s Every Man in his Humour, in which a character calls for a stool to be melancholy upon. Davies, however, believes strongly that, for Dowland, melancholy is more than just a pose. That conviction accounts for the passion which Davies brings to the songs on this disc.

Davies is ably accompanied by lutenist Thomas Dunford, who also has five solos. They include The Frog Galliard, a performance which, for good measure, throws in Greensleeves as an excursion. Davies sang in Vancouver, Banff and Calgary a couple of months ago. I hope we shall hear him in Toronto soon.

Terra Tremuit
Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal; Christopher Jackson
ATMA ACD2 2653

Several Renaissance composers dwell on the subject of world catastrophe – the cataclysms, floods, epidemics that will lead to humanity’s end. On this disc Christopher Jackson’s studio (40 years old this year) interprets doom-laden compositions by six such composers.

 An all-too-short one-minute motet Terra tremuit by William Byrd, with its sometimes clashing parts, sets the scene. Antoine Brumel’s five-movement Earthquake Mass for 12 voices follows, starting with a serene “Kyrie eleison” and a “Gloria” initially gentle but where the discordant music finally reflects the sinister nature of this compilation. It is certainly the case during Brumel’s “Sanctus, Benedictus”; his demands on the vocal abilities of the singers to change from high to low, and to perform melodic leaps must surely be intended to reflect the events of an earthquake.

 Then there are the composers who followed in the footsteps of Brumel. Vaet and Crecquillon, as employees at the court of the emperor Charles V, saw first hand the terrors of absolute power; not surprisingly they bring a mellow and melancholy richness to their compositions – both are terrified as they look to the last day and their judgment. More formal is Palestrina’s Terra tremuit. This depicts the aftermath of the earth’s trembling and the quiet that pertains as God rises in judgment.

 And if the sky does fall in, at least you will have been warned well in advance by some of the greatest early composers.

Le Jardin de Monsieur Rameau
Les Arts Florisants; William Christie
Les Arts Florissants Editions Edition AF002

Le Jardin des Voix is a two-week training program for young singers, organized by the ensemble Les Arts Florissants. It was launched in 2002 and this recording represents its sixth edition. Le Jardin de Monsieur Rameau was devised by Paul Agnew, the Associate Director of Les Arts Florissants. It was given as a semi-staged entertainment, first in Caen (in Normandy) and then on a tour that took the musicians as far west as New York and as far east as Helsinki.

In an interview printed in the booklet that comes with the CD, Agnew expresses the view that a normal training program may help a singer to perform the role of Gilda or that of Masetto but is of little help in 18th-century French opera. The training these young singers received has certainly paid off in their idiomatic command of both the literary and the musical language of the works performed. They are also very well attuned to each other.

The music of Rameau is central to the disc but there are also arias, duets and ensembles from Montéclair, Campra, Grandval, Dauvergne and Gluck. When I saw the track list I was concerned that the overall effect would be terribly fragmented, but I need not have worried. The program flows beautifully. I was especially taken with the alto-tenor duet from Rameau's Les fêtes d'Hébé, with the baritone aria from the fourth Act of his Dardanus and, most of all, with the heavenly quartet from his Les Indes galantes, which closes this recording.

Italian Memories
Mauro Bertoli
Independent (maurobertoli.com)

Despite Italy’s long-standing reputation as a country of vocal music, there is also a keyboard tradition going back as far as Frescobaldi – and what better way of sampling 300 years of Italian keyboard music than with this new recording titled Italian Memories with pianist Mauro Bertoli?

Born in Brescia, Italy, Bertoli has established an international reputation within a fairly short time, having appeared in recital and as a soloist with numerous chamber ensembles and orchestras throughout the world. A recipient of the prestigious Giuseppe Sinopoli award in 2006, Bertoli has been artist-in-residence at Carleton University in Ottawa since 2009. Italian Memories is his fourth recording, and one that clearly brings him back to his roots.

The CD opens with four miniatures by three composers, Benedetto Marcello, Mattia Vento and Domenico Paradisi. Bertoli’s playing is elegant and poised, easily demonstrating how well music originally intended for harpsichord can sound on a concert grand. The name Muzio Clementi is a more familiar one – is there a piano student who hasn’t played music by this Italian-born composer who spent most of his life in England and whose reputation rivalled that of Haydn? The two sonatas presented here are a delight, and Bertoli makes ease of the sometimes breakneck speed required of the performer. A complete change of pace comes with two brief and languorous pieces by Martucci and the Diario Indiano by Ferruccio Busoni, an homage to Native American culture. The latter is a true study in contrasts where Bertoli’s wonderful sense of tonal colour is juxtaposed with a formidable technique.

The final work is a true tour de force, music not by an Italian but by the 12- year- old Franz Liszt – the Impromptu Brilliant on Themes by Rossini and Spontini. Here, both Liszt and Bertoli pull out all the stops in this flamboyant piece, thus rounding out a splendid program of music that deserves greater exposure.

Brahms – String Quintets
Takács Quartet; Lawrence Power
Hyperion CDA67900

The string quintet, as an art form, offers ingenious possibilities for creating unique harmonies and colours, and Brahms took full advantage of that. While he was known to have some difficulties establishing the right medium for his creative ideas, with string quintets he had found a perfect vehicle for expressing the depth and uniqueness of his artistry. Edvard Grieg allowed for the same sentiments in one of his letters: “How different the person we call Brahms now suddenly appears to us! Now for the first time I see and feel how whole he was both as an artist and as a human being.”

In String Quintet in F Major, Op.88, we hear Brahms’ signature use of eighth notes against triplets enhanced by syncopation in the first movement. The second movement combines the characteristics of two movements by means of alternation, thus expressing both dark colours that evoke mystery and a light, pastoral character. The rhythmic energy of the closing movement grants a boisterous mood to the fugal subject. The String Quintet in G Major, Op.111, opens with a grand, densely scored first movement, followed by two middle movements with more alluring, dreamy melodies. The final movement follows the thread of different and at times surprising tonalities.

The members of the Takács Quartet and Lawrence Power present cohesive and thoughtful performances. They are equally at ease expressing melancholy and introspection as they are at bringing out the complexity of Brahms’ writing. Their vibrato is so exquisite that it makes every note meaningful. If you find yourself in a mood for contemplation, this is a perfect recording for such moments.