Pros: the music, the sparkle of the theorbo, and the more than able backing. Everything.
Cons: it's extremely nerdy
The Bottom Line: While this music is rather obscure, that makes it all the more a jewel to be treasured. Intricate and at times dazzling performances and glorious sound.
Every now and again, something comes out of left field and strikes you in a way that you would never have imagined. Even in my rather eclectic collection, this recording is something quite singular, and of all the impulse buys that my impulsive mind has amassed over the years, this one is right up there as one of the most treasured.
To say that the music of Girolamo Kapsberger and Alessandro Piccinini is obscure is, well, stating the obvious in the most obvious of ways. Like many interesting and novel musicians of the 17th century, they were famous, sometimes even legendary, in their own time, only to have their fame dwindle down to moth-bitten, dust-ridden manuscripts and memoirs hidden away in some musty vault. Some 350 years later, the memories of these interesting and often innovative composers is brought to light, encapsulated by the glorious tones of the bizarre, intricate and altogether interesting instrument that is the theorbo.
The boutique label Deux-Elles, based in the UK, released this gem early on in 2003, and I caught wind of it after listening to an intriguing piece by Kapsberger on Romanesca’s recording of the “Phantasticus” style of music, as it was called way back when. In my wandering browsings I found the CD and thought I’d give it a shot. I got free shipping from the UK and I was happy with that! I was quite anxious to give it a listen, naturally.
The theorbo is an intricate 14-string bass lute, the forerunner to the acoustic guitar, and it has two sets of strings - the normal, treble strings which run up the fretboard, and a set of bass drone strings which are completely independent of the fretboard, running off in thin air. The combination of these diapason strings, as they were called, and the normal strings, produces some wonderful harmonics.
The first chord I heard resonated within me, and I knew that I’d managed to find something quite special. The warm, crystal tones of the theorbo, and especially the sonorous bass notes, are particularly pleasing, and in many ways very relaxing. It, quite literally, hearks back to a different time and place. It is quite a sensory experience.
What makes it all the more astounding is that theorbist, an exceptionally talented young man by the name of Matthew Wadsworth, is blind. I don’t know if anyone has seen a theorbo, or as this particular instrument is more likely to be, the larger chitarrone, it’s quite an imposing instrument. As the CD title implies, Wadsworth's instrument has 14 strings, and the ‘fretboard’, such as there is, is enormous, at least as tall a standing man. For a blind man to not only learn such an impressive instrument, but play with such clarity, virtuosity and at times improvisatory brilliance, is quite out of the ordinary indeed.
The other musicians in the ensemble are Gary Cooper on the keyboard instruments, who acquits himself very well and attempts to steal the show with an intricate and at times dazzling display on the first Passacaglia, and Mark Levy on the larger bass instruments, which are mentioned further on.
The two featured composers were at the top of their field with the instrument, back when it was in vogue, and their approaches couldn’t be more different. Kapsberger’s music has a very folksy, almost rustic feel to it, swirling and almost exotic, full of odd touches and flourishes, but eminently listenable. Piccinini’s style is much more formal, quite expressive, but not quite as flashy, perhaps more suitable for the table of a noble house or stately court than the free-wheeling, down-to-earth form of Kapsberger. However, there are still flashes of virtuosic brilliance, and the wonderfully resounding chordal bass booms.
The pieces written by Piccinini are all unaccompanied, and by contrast, the works of Kapsberger included here all have some sort of continuo backing, and these instruments themselves bring a great deal of texture and a rich flavour to the music. The first Passacaglia is a wonderful blend of the plucked strings of the theorbo and harpsichord, with neither one nor the other dominating proceedings, but mostly complementing each other, and the short, opening Toccata featuring a chamber organ and a very strange, almost beguiling drone instrument called a Lirone is a very interesting and harmonious beginning.
My favourite of them all is the dramatic 19th track, also a Toccata (I’m really not too sure what that means, musicologically!), which has the Lirone and harpsichord backing the weaving theorbo, which runs up and down in stirring chromatics and arpeggios, often slowing to a sensual standstill, until the shimmering, startling cascade of the finale, closing in an uncharacteristic quiet lull.
There is also an interesting set of four variations on a theme, each more and more intricate, over a repeated bass motif played on the ancestor of the double bass, the violone, which has a very deep, dark tone. While hardly setting the world on fire in terms of tempo and excitement, these pieces are very pleasant, and the building of the variations is interesting and immediately obvious. They are followed by a very, very sedate Passacaglia of great charm, though it may be a little bit repetitive.
While the more memorable pieces of the set are of Kapsberger’s oeuvre, the music of Piccinini is in general quite lovely, the clear tones of the theorbo ringing out beautifully, and the recorded sound is as perfect as my ears can detect. These unaccompanied pieces can set the most worried mind at ease, with their gentle harmonies, the ringing of the deeper bass combining seamlessly with the higher notes, and also at times displays of Italian fire and brimstone, though tempered by the sweet tone of the instrument.
Finishing off this marvellous CD is a Canario, an exotic and often provocative dance, though this is perhaps a little more subtle than sensuous, though with more than a little Spanish spice.
This is a most rewarding purchase, in particular for those interested in new and different styles of music, and also for early music aficionados who have yet to discover the innovation, sumptuous harmonies, and medieval exoticism of perhaps the greatest exponents of the intriguing and unfortunately neglected theorbo. And for anyone after music simply to relax to, you’ll find fewer more apt recordings out there for that purpose - after soaking in this music you’ll find the soul that little bit more refreshed.
Hopefully this has sparked your interest in something a little bit different, and altogether rare - and I hope to inspire someone to try this rather remarkable recording out. Let me know if it worked!
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.