My Favorite Dowland

John Dowland's Lachrimae cycle is among the finest surviving instrumental dance music of the turn of the seventeenth century. This long awaited recording with the Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra features new a instrumentation by Skip Sempe: 6 viols, 5 recorders, 2 cornetti, 3 trombones, 2 virginals and harpsichord. Skip Sempe's new performance order of the twenty-one Lachrimae dances revives the tradition of Pavan and Galliard pairs, rather than treating them as isolated movements. The idea of a 'Renaissance Orchestra' in which all the different instrumental consorts are brought together is the overlooked message of these sixteenth and seventeenth century publications. Large ensembles, for large or commemorative occasions, were every bit as much the 'composer's intention' as were smaller, intimate groups. This missing link has been proposed and provided by the concerts and recordings of the Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra since the first years of the twenty-first century, and is one of their remarkable achievements in 'cutting through the noise'.

The gender-bending beauty of THE DARK IS MY DELIGHT is due to the amazing instrument of countertenor Brian Asawa. As countertenors return to the fore, often replacing mezzos in roles that were originated by castrati, recording and performance opportunities abound. Asawa, along with colleagues David Daniels, Jochen Kowalski, and Michael Chance stand alone as the preeminent interpreters of the countertenor repertoire.
Asawa's voice is indisputably precise and a delight to the ear. The songs of Dowland are darker in tone, and the anonymous popular songs and those by Campion are filled with mixed emotions, but all give Asawa the opportunity to show the listener that this was the music of the people, of everyday life and all of its ups and downs.
This collection of Elizabethan songs for lute and voice is perfectly suited for Asawa and lutenist David Tayler. Instead of potential monotony, we hear continuous spontaneity and freshness. Tayler, who transcribed the lute parts from original sources, uses numerous instruments tuned to different pitches to keep in accordance with performance practices of the time. His playing matches the flowing lyricism of Asawa and together they have created a unique and compelling recording.

The pieces, recorded here, form merely the tip of a fascinating iceberg. When medievist/archivist Andr� Nieuwlaat initially shared his discoveries (much more Dowland lute music) with lutenist Mike Fentross two years ago, he realized immediately their importance. Every composer has his own musical signature. Trusting the experience that Mike Fentross has gained throughout his thirty-year career as a professional lute player, and as Professor of Lute at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague for the last 15 years, he started to make a selection from all the pieces in the pertinent manuscripts. He let himself be guided by musical intuition, by the essence of the pieces, and by constantly asking himself the question: do I recognize Dowland's hand in this? The overall quality of the pieces to choose from was very impressive, and the answer to this question was: ' Yes, I recognize Dowland in these works, without a shadow of a doubt'. His work pays off with this fascinating release.

This wonderful album has won two major Early Music awards: the 2017 Gramophone Award and the 2017 Diapason d'or de l'annee. It was also named a BBC Radio 3 Building A Library 'First Choice'. John Dowland's gifts as an exceptional melodist are evident throughout Lachrimae or Seven Tears, an artistic achievement which has cast a remarkable spell on early music. Summing up the Renaissance preoccupation with melancholy, this extraordinary collection of dance music for viols and lute includes Dowland's 'signature' piece, Semper Dowland semper Dolens. Dowland reveals a personal world of sublime sadness, grief, anger and melancholy mollified by moments of joy and gladness. A skilled lutenist, Dowland's intricately-worked parts demand perfect synchronicity between Phantasm and Elizabeth Kenny, who rise to the technical and tempi challenges of marrying their instruments. Although freed from lyric constraints poetic images linger prompting Phantasm's Laurence Dreyfus to describe this as "the most sensuously tuneful hour of music ever written".

French lutenist Florent Marie presents his second solo album on Carpe Diem Records: A collection of Renaissance lute music by the famous John Dowland. Recorded in a small church in the normannic countryside, this album features both melancholic and more uplifting compositions of the great English master of the lute, creating an emotional and colorful rendering of these mostly well-known and loved pieces.

Romantic guitar in the hands of a virtuoso of international renown absolutely guarantees extraordinary musical experiences. Milosz Maczynski tells the history of melancholy from the Renaissance to Romanticism, masterfully using time and melodious phrases. The album is full of hidden emotions, captivating with an atmosphere of intimacy and contemplation.

The original 1971 Merry-Go-Down LP on Unicorn Records was the brainchild of the late Fred Tomlinson, former chairman of the Peter Warlock Society, to showcase Peter Warlock's extraordinary range of musical and literary knowledge and achievements. The Peter Warlock Society and Convivium Records consider the content and performances of the pioneering LP to be of such a high standard as to require re-release, and have facilitated it's reproduction on this delightful CD. Michael Graves, Chairman, Peter Warlock Society

Classical Music

In Dowland’s words: “ingenuous profession of Musicke, which from my childhoode I have ever aymed at,... the better to attain so excellent a science”. Mike Fentross achieves this “divine science of musicke” by wooing his audience by “speaking harmony” on his sweet lute. His art entwines harmony and poetry, albeit often a melancholic art, which is then framed by the proportions of rhythm. His art teaches, stirs and delights the heart and soul of his honorable listeners in profound ways. Mike Fentross first studied with Toyohiko Satoh at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, then with Nigel North and José Miguel Moreno. He has built a solid reputation as a “continuist”, playing in renowned orchestras like Les Arts Florissants, and is much in demand in his country as well as abroad. He plays and records regularly with great European ensembles such as Capriccio Stravagante, Les Arts Florissants, the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, the Harp Consort, the New London Consort and Al Ayre Espanol. In 1991 he founded La Sfera Armoniosa, a group devoted to the performance of 17th-century music. Since 1996 Mike Fentross is guest professor at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague.

Classical Music

This recording combines Dowland lute selections with poetry of Shakespeare.

Sacred Music From The Court Of

Swiss guitarist Christoph Denoth explores the enchanting lute music of JohnDowland using his own arrangements made from Dowland’s original handwritten scores. + “Dowland, the melancholic poet of the lute, is free of any instrumental limitation. The melodic, contrapuntal and harmonic approach of his music is both wondrous and unique. Its expression is one of noble sadness, melancholy and genuine beauty. - Christoph Denoth

Classical Music