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Eccles: The Judgment Of Paris, Mad Songs / Curnyn, Crowe, Hulett, Early Opera Company
Chandos

Eccles: The Judgment Of Paris, Mad Songs / Curnyn, Crowe, Hulett, Early Opera Company

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Details

Composer
ECCLES, JOHN
Artist
Crowe, Booth, Bickley, Curnyn, Early Opera Company
Format
CD
Label
Chandos
Released
Apr 28, 2009
Catalog #
CHAN 0759
UPC
095115075920

About



ECCLES The Judgment of Paris & • Christian Curnyn (hpd, 1–3 cond); Roderick Williams ( Mercury ); Benjamin Hulett ( Paris ); Susan Bickley ( Juno, mez 3 ); Claire Booth ( Pallas Athena, sop 2 ); Lucy Crowe ( Venus, sop 1 ); Richard Sweeney (gtr, archlute); 1–3 Emilia Benjamin (b vl); 1–3 early op company • CHANDOS 759 (62:13 Text and Translation)


& Restless in Thought; 1 Love’s but the frailty of the Mind; 2 I Burn, I burn 3


The Judgment of Paris , the tale of the famed competition between three Olympian goddesses that led to the Trojan War, was itself the subject of a competition. In 1700, a group of English nobility offered up a libretto by the famous William Congreve for competitive setting. Four composers were selected from those who replied to this ad in the London Gazette:


Several Persons of Quality having, for the Encouragement of MUSICK Advanced 200 Guineas, to be distributed in 4 Prizes, the First of 100, the Second of 50, the Third of 30 and the Fourth of 20 Guineas, to such Masters as shall be adjudged to compose the best; this is therefore to give Notice, that those who intend to put in for the Prizes, are to repair to Jacob Tonson at Grays-Inn-Gate before Easter-Day next, where they may be further Informed.


All four completed works were presented on stage individually, in events that, according to Congreve, a social snob of the first water, were “crammed with beauties and beaux, not one scrub being admitted.” This was followed by all four Judgments being offered as a single evening’s entertainment, with subscribers choosing the order of winners. John Weldon, organist of New College, Oxford and a former pupil of Purcell’s, scored something of an upset victory, having little previous theatrical experience. Eccles, the favorite, musical director for the Lincoln’s Inn Fields company and one of the king’s 24 musicians-in-ordinary, came in second, ahead of Daniel Purcell, the late composer’s younger brother. Placing last was Gottfried Finger, a Moravian composer and viol-player who a few professional musicians felt made the best showing of all. According to Roger North, James II’s attorney general and an inveterate concertgoer, Finger complained, perhaps unreasonably, that he had hoped to be “judged by men, and not by boys.” Sadly, his Judgment of Paris is lost, though all three of the others have survived; they were presented in 1989 at Proms concerts, where Eccles was given the palm. I can’t speak to the versions of Weldon or Daniel Purcell, though a bundled recording of all three works would have made for some fine comparisons. In any case, the opera of Eccles is by no means easily dismissed. Choral pieces are handled with distinction. Melodies are usually unadorned, and not infrequently possess a popular cast. The work is technically assured, rhythmically varied, and theatrically alive.


The judgment section of the piece, following the exposition, supplies a good illustration of the composer’s gifts. In it, Eccles differentiates among the three goddesses who seek the golden apple from Paris, providing each with a distinctive ritornello and brief, introductory song. Juno receives a majestic march; Pallas Athena, a graceful chaconne, whose accented second beat seems to sweep all before it; Venus, a minor-key sarabande that utilizes two recorders and a flute in the melodic line to emphasize what the period perceived as femininity. (At least she comes off better than in Tannhäuser .) Congreve shrewdly leaves out all efforts at bribery up to this point, however, leading to confusion in the mind of Paris, and a second, intensified round of presentations by the deific trio. In the fey “Let Ambition fire thy Mind,” Juno delivers a darkly martial, minor-key piece. She promises to Paris the delights of ruling an empire without toil or care. (The concluding verse, given to the divided chorus, with the violins running semiquaver figures, is especially effective.) The theme itself proved catchy enough upon publication to survive as a popular solo fiddle tune of the day. Boswell wrote of his almost obsessive affection for it. Ironically, a friend of mine who was part-timing as a Celtic fiddler once asked me if I knew why an old piece he played was given the odd name of “Let Ambition fire thy Mind.” After that, “Hark, hark! the glorious Voice of War” seems a small step down in energy and character, though it grants Pallas the first appearance of trumpets in the opera, alla battaglia . Venus restores an edge to the competition with “Nature fram’d thee sure for Loving,” a haunting minor key tune whose sensuous intimacy proves Handel wasn’t the only one capable of musically ravishing an English Baroque audience.


The recording concludes with three “mad songs.” These were very popular on London stages at the time, involving a female singer whose unrequited or suddenly terminated love leads to insanity. This chaotic madness is then revealed in a series of rhetorically balanced and logically contoured poems. I confess to little love for the genre, as you might guess from my remarks, but these three of Eccles are at least pleasant, if unmemorable. I find the best of the lot to be “I burn, I burn, my Brain consumes to Ashes,” and that’s at least in part due to its performer, Susan Bickley. If this recording were to offer its own golden apple to one of its three female soloists for articulation, tone, and dramatic interpretation, she would win, hands down. Bickley is one of those mezzos who shade up to a soprano, and her upper range is bright and ringingly glorious in its sound. Claire Booth’s slightly dull tone is not always well supported, and though she enunciates well, I find her far too restrained in lines that brim over with ardor for and joy in war. Lucy Crowe’s sweet tone and refined phrasing makes her an excellent choice for Venus, though, and if she’s rushed a bit in the opera, there’s more expressiveness in her mad song, “Restless in Thought disturb’d in Mind.”


The rest of the cast is top notch. Benjamin Hulett displays an attractive lyric tenor voice, notable for its sensitive deployment of color in “O Ravishing Delight.” Baritone Roderick Williams does a particularly fine job with the phrasing of his only song, “Fear not, Mortal, none shall harm thee.” This is my first exposure to the early opera company, an ensemble of 22 performers; effectively 18, if you disregard the brief appearance of the four trumpets. They deploy two bass violins and a bass viol instead of cellos and double basses on this release, along with a lowered A pitch of 392 Hz. The resulting sound is mellow, if not dark, vitiated by a few rushed tempo choices, notably Venus’s second song. Balance between singers and orchestra is good, with excellent choices for continuo.


It’s great to have this major work by Eccles easily available on disc. Perhaps we can now get the other two extant versions of the opera, as well—or possibly his opera Semele , set to another text by Congreve. Regardless, there’s much to enjoy, here.


FANFARE: Barry Brenesal

Tracklist 26 tracks

  1. 1 Symphony for Mercury: — 01:21
    Track
    1
    Title
    Symphony for Mercury: —
    Duration
    01:21
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  2. 2 Symphony for Mercury: — 02:17
    Track
    2
    Title
    Symphony for Mercury: —
    Duration
    02:17
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  3. 3 Symphony for Mercury: Slow - 01:46
    Track
    3
    Title
    Symphony for Mercury: Slow -
    Duration
    01:46
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  4. 4 Symphony for Mercury: Brisk 00:56
    Track
    4
    Title
    Symphony for Mercury: Brisk
    Duration
    00:56
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  5. 5 From high Olympus, and the Realms above (Mercury, Paris) 03:26
    Track
    5
    Title
    From high Olympus, and the Realms above (Mercury, Paris)
    Duration
    03:26
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Roderick Williams, Benjamin Hulett
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  6. 6 O Ravishing Delight! (Paris) 02:37
    Track
    6
    Title
    O Ravishing Delight! (Paris)
    Duration
    02:37
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Benjamin Hulett
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  7. 7 Fear not, Mortal: none shall harm thee (Mercury) 01:28
    Track
    7
    Title
    Fear not, Mortal: none shall harm thee (Mercury)
    Duration
    01:28
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Roderick Williams
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  8. 8 Happy thou of Human Race (Mercury, Paris) 01:51
    Track
    8
    Title
    Happy thou of Human Race (Mercury, Paris)
    Duration
    01:51
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Roderick Williams, Benjamin Hulett
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  9. 9 Symphony for Juno: Saturnia, Wife of Thundring Jove, am I (Juno) 03:45
    Track
    9
    Title
    Symphony for Juno: Saturnia, Wife of Thundring Jove, am I (Juno)
    Duration
    03:45
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Susan Bickley
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  10. 10 Symphony for Pallas: This way, Mortal, bend thy Eyes (Pallas) 02:27
    Track
    10
    Title
    Symphony for Pallas: This way, Mortal, bend thy Eyes (Pallas)
    Duration
    02:27
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  11. 11 Symphony for Venus: Hither turn thee, garde Swain (Venus) 04:07
    Track
    11
    Title
    Symphony for Venus: Hither turn thee, garde Swain (Venus)
    Duration
    04:07
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Lucy Crowe
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  12. 12 Hither turn thee, gentle Swain (Venus, Pallas, Juno) 01:52
    Track
    12
    Title
    Hither turn thee, gentle Swain (Venus, Pallas, Juno)
    Duration
    01:52
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Lucy Crowe, Susan Bickley, Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  13. 13 Distracted I turn, but I cannot decide (Paris) - Apart let me view then each heav'nly Fair (Paris) 02:28
    Track
    13
    Title
    Distracted I turn, but I cannot decide (Paris) - Apart let me view then each heav'nly Fair (Paris)
    Duration
    02:28
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Benjamin Hulett
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  14. 14 Symphony: Let Ambition fire thy Mind (Juno) 03:31
    Track
    14
    Title
    Symphony: Let Ambition fire thy Mind (Juno)
    Duration
    03:31
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Susan Bickley
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  15. 15 Awake, awake, thy Spirits raise (Pallas) - Symphony 01:13
    Track
    15
    Title
    Awake, awake, thy Spirits raise (Pallas) - Symphony
    Duration
    01:13
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  16. 16 Hark, hark! the glorious Voice of War (Pallas) - Symphony 01:16
    Track
    16
    Title
    Hark, hark! the glorious Voice of War (Pallas) - Symphony
    Duration
    01:16
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  17. 17 Oh what Joys does Conquest yield! (Pallas) 01:05
    Track
    17
    Title
    Oh what Joys does Conquest yield! (Pallas)
    Duration
    01:05
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  18. 18 O how glorious 'tis to see (Chorus) 01:10
    Track
    18
    Title
    O how glorious 'tis to see (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:10
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Chorus, Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  19. 19 Symphony 01:17
    Track
    19
    Title
    Symphony
    Duration
    01:17
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  20. 20 Stay, lovely Youth, delay thy Choice (Venus) - Far from thee be anxious Care (Venus, Chorus) 02:59
    Track
    20
    Title
    Stay, lovely Youth, delay thy Choice (Venus) - Far from thee be anxious Care (Venus, Chorus)
    Duration
    02:59
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Lucy Crowe
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Chorus, Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  21. 21 Nature fram'd thee sure for Loving (Venus) - Fairest she, all Nymphs transcending (Venus) 03:48
    Track
    21
    Title
    Nature fram'd thee sure for Loving (Venus) - Fairest she, all Nymphs transcending (Venus)
    Duration
    03:48
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Lucy Crowe
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  22. 22 I yield, I yield, O take the Prize (Paris) 01:10
    Track
    22
    Title
    I yield, I yield, O take the Prize (Paris)
    Duration
    01:10
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Benjamin Hulett
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  23. 23 Hither all ye Graces, all ye Loves (Grand Chorus) 01:43
    Track
    23
    Title
    Hither all ye Graces, all ye Loves (Grand Chorus)
    Duration
    01:43
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Chorus, Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  24. 24 She Ventures, and He Wins: Restless in Thought disturb'd in Mind 04:12
    Track
    24
    Title
    She Ventures, and He Wins: Restless in Thought disturb'd in Mind
    Duration
    04:12
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Lucy Crowe
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  25. 25 The Way of the World: Love's but the frailty of the Mind 04:34
    Track
    25
    Title
    The Way of the World: Love's but the frailty of the Mind
    Duration
    04:34
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Claire Booth
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn
  26. 26 The Comical History of Don Quixote: I Burn, I burn, my Brain consumes to Ashes 03:26
    Track
    26
    Title
    The Comical History of Don Quixote: I Burn, I burn, my Brain consumes to Ashes
    Duration
    03:26
    Composer
    John Eccles
    Performer
    Susan Bickley
    Ensemble
    Early Opera Company Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christian Curnyn