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GRAMOPHONE (11/2010)
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Arcana
A355
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8033891690311 (ID34)
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Reviewer: Fabrice
Fitch
The Ferrara Ensemble revisits the Ars Subtilior with frequently splendid results
It’s a dozen years or so since the Ferrara Ensemble last indulged us with its own inimitable take on the weird and wonderful repertory of the late
14th century. In fact, this new recording was made over a period of nine years ending in 2009, so the hiatus is more apparent than real. Given that, one shouldn’t be surprised at the continuity with their previous projects (most of which were on this same label): the dreamy, languid view adopted here may not please everyone but those who prefer a more incisive approach will enjoy the instrumental selections (in particular the surprisingly effective and extended instrumental Principio di virtù) and the jauntier rendering of Solage’s Calextone, qui fut dame.
An instructive comparison might be with Project Ars Nova’s performance of the wonderful Medee fu (for the New Albion label), whose metrical intricacies are delivered more trenchantly on the earlier recording (with several of the same musicians, curiously). If, however, you fall in with Crawford Young’s vision, the singing, fronted by the sublime Lena-Susanne Norin, is mostly superb (try the concluding track, Egidius Augustinus’ Roses et lis); and the choice of repertoire is very rewarding, including as it does two works by the incomparable Jacob de Senleches (his Tel me voit is particularly effective). Part of the magic of this repertory is the way in which melodic ideas are pushed to the limit: the beginning of Roses et lis circles tantalisingly on two repeated pitches, which may look tiresome on paper but is here utterly captivating. Weird and wonderful, indeed.
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