These reviews first appeared in The Quarterly of the Lute Society of America in significantly altered form.
John Dowland (1563-1636) is indisputably the premier composer for the lute. He led a peripatetic life around Europe, including a decade in Denmark as the court lutenist, which brought a cosmopolitan experience to his composing. He was a master of both melody and polyphony, in a counter-reformationary, post-Council of Trent movement in European music away from the complexity of polyphony and the obscuring of text to monody and the highlighting of text. While Monteverdi was inventing modern harmony down in Italy, Dowland was writing secular songs, with complex accompaniments. In the 70’s Diane Poulton edited and published over 200 solo works for lute ascribed by her to him in the now standard edition.
Dowland spent years on the road because it wasn’t until late in life that he became court lutenist in England under James I. During the reign of Good Queen Bess, that brass ring eluded him. This was probably due in part to co-catholic religionist, William Byrd’s opposition to his appointment. But like Shakespeare, Byrd defines for us now Elizabethan culture. The word most often used to describe Dowland’s oeuvre is “melancholy,” and the lacrimea is probably his defining form. His songs and solo pieces are generally short but packed with melodic and polyphonic originality.
In the early 20th century, a revival of his music could be said to have been the gateway to much of the early music movement in Great Britain, with both lutenists and singers taking up the standard for him. Names like Bream, Deller and Pears are associated with his rediscovery. Luminaries Paul Odette and Nigel North have both recorded his solo works comprehensively for Harmonia Mundi and Naxos, respectively. And yet any lutenist with a sense of ambition continues to try to make his or her mark by recording at least some of Dowland’s works, often the best known and loved ones. Therefore, it is unsurprising that the Lute Society’s CD inbox has been filled with interpretations of Dowland’s music by new (and new-ish) entrants. It is remarkable how in this niche field, where there is a very limited market among music consumers for music of fretted instruments of this period, how many very talented, knowledgeable and skilled renaissance lutenists there are. Perhaps, this is not surprising, given the beauty and emotional impact of Dowland’s extensive catalog.
Lute Works John Dowland PK Farstad FSP Studio 2022 19 tracks
First there is PK Farstad, who has released 18 albums on his own label and has taught classical guitar since 1976 at Agder Conservatory of Music in the far south of Norway near the North Sea. Farstad plays a 7-course lute by Lauri Niskanen after Venere. The CD comes with minimal notes about either the music or the player. All of the music is from Poulton. About half of the pieces are among the less frequently played and the other half are chestnuts. Farstad’s approach can be characterized as straightforward and uncomplicated. The sound is robust. And, what’s that about melancholy and Dowland? Not for Mr. Farstad. The playing on this recording might even be called upbeat. It is a model for students of the lute because there is nothing fancy or idiosyncratic about the performances. It’s “just the (musical) facts, ma’am,” uncomplicated playing.
While some performers of this repertoire are concerned about the vertical (that is polyphony), Farstad’s concern is in the horizontal (the top line melody and the harmony underlying it). The playing favors slow tempi – which, along with clear articulation, accentuates the melodic line. Given Dowland’s extensive output of songs there is much to recommend of an approach that treats these pieces as melody line and accompaniment – a foreshadowing of the monody that is just around the corner in Italy in the early 1600’s.
John Dowland: In Darkness Michael Chance, Countertenor Paul Beier, Lute Stradavarius 2015 18 Tracks 78’19
At the center of Dowland’s music are the songs. Michael Chance and Paul Beier are two major figures in the modern revival of the lute – with Beier being a founder of the British Lute Society and Chance one of the most noted interpreters of vocal music of the English renaissance, having been knighted as a Commander of the British Empire. Beier plays a ten-course lute, made by Michael Lowe after Frei, using gut strings. The music is late Dowland, featuring songs from Pilgrim’s Solace and late instrumental pieces from several sources.
What’s particularly striking about the solo lute playing here is the special sound of gut strings. The sound is rich, warm and organic – with nothing steely or artificial about it. The recording quality makes the most of it. Also worth noting is the difference between the recessed recording of the lute as accompanist, as contrasted to the more forward, present recording of Beier’s solo work. Beier is the most deferential and sympathetic of accompanists – to his great credit. The playing is confident, light and fleet, with some dynamic contrast in the solo playing. The ornamentation of the solo work is elegant, tasteful and musical. The playing is consistent and measured and lovely among the solo works.
Chance’s tenor is in the old school English style, which has, perhaps, gone out of fashion. Chance uses a nasal head voice, with little to no vibrato. The recording of both the vocal and instrumental selections emphasize Dowland’s obsession with the dolores, without out much relief. This is Dowland as a grumpy old man. Pitch tends to the imprecise at the beginning and end of phrases. Textual contrasts are emphasized by a stylized swelling of volume and bending of pitch – a technique that requires an absolute certainty of pitch in order to be effective. But notwithstanding that tool, there is a uniformity of expression both within and between selections. These artists bring a very traditional, strong, considered view of the style of performance appropriate to Dowland’s music. It emphasizes a quality of British loss and longing; and, given the texts of the songs, both secular and sacred. The focus is on creating a period atmosphere and attitude, rather than on beautiful vocal production.
Note also that this CD has a generous almost 80 minutes of music jammed on to it. A couple of the others here under review are equally copious. While there is a technical limit to how much information can be included on a physical disk, that limit seems to have increased recently. With the advent of streaming and the demise of the disk, any limitation on content length is gradually becoming something of an anachronism.
John Dowland [Complete] LachrimaeMusicall Humors Thomas Dunford, Lute Alpha Classics 2023 21 Tracks 70’ 29
When he first appeared in New York fifteen years ago, as an accompanist to Iestyn Davies, Thomas Dunford was advertised as the “Eric Clapton of the lute.” Since that time, he has, thankfully, dropped that moniker, and has gone on the become one the highest visibility lutenists in Europe – active as the house continuo player for William Christie’s “Les Arts Florissant,” frequently appearing on social media traipsing around Christine’s spectacular home and garden in rural France. His recent recordings have been many (including with his group “Jupiter” and his ladylove, now spouse, soprano Lea Desandre). All are uniformly superlative.
Dunford favors the archlute for just about everything, but on this recording with consort of viols Musicall Humors, he sports an eight-course lute by Paul Tomson – and plucks away nearly in the background. This is elegant accomplished playing. It intersperses Dowland’s seven Lachrimae pavanes with galliards composed at about the same time of 1604. The Lachrimae are subtitled “Or Seven Teares Figured in Seven Passionate Pavans.” The pavanes are variations on a melodic germ from the song “Flow my Tears.” This was a period when Dowland was once again seriously bummed out about not being named as court lutenist to Elizabeth I. And the lacrimae are the very essence of Dowlandian melancholy. Alternating them with the more danceable galliards (which, however, are very much also characteristic Dowland) was a fine idea.
The melody lines in these settings (original to Dowland for this instrumentation) are more or less in the lute, and somewhat surprisingly, almost never in the tenor viol. The microphones are set back from the ensemble, so the lute, even though it is carrying the tune, is the equal of five viols, which provide the harmonic base for the top line. At times, one has to listen particularly carefully to even hear the melody. The performances aim for a cool, smooth, measured perfection. The lute part is a simple, single line – with the polyphony carried by the consort. Dunford’s playing is chaste, unadorned much by way of ornament. The consort provides a warm, rich blanket of sound enveloping the lute. While the lacrimae are appropriately lachrymose, the galliards are jaunty, even sprightly, creating a lovely contrast and a fully satisfying musical experience (too much 17th century musical gloominess can send even the cheeriest of individuals to pull out the single malt and drink to excess after seventy minutes). The disk jacket includes a rather cool reproduction of the Lachrime, with the parts organized so that players facing different sides of the book can play off of one copy.
Setting oneself up as the “Eric Clapton of the lute,” may not make one particularly attentive to the fine points of historical practice, or the results of the latest musicological scholarship. But the splendor of the results cannot be argued with. In addition, as with Musicall Humors, Dunford seems to be something of a pied piper for outstanding collaborators in all of his music making.
John Dowland: Semper Dowland Mike Fentross Zefir Records 2021 18 tracks 57’ 56
Mike Fentross’ recording of some of Dowland’s most well-known solo works is nonpareil. For works that have probably been recorded dozens of times, by the world’s most celebrated lutenists, this recording stands out for it’s just down-right uncomplicated beauty. The challenge for the discriminating listener in a universe of excellent lute players, performing and recording some of the same material to differentiate among them, particularly in writing about them, is considerable. And then, to articulate why one performance among those many is especially moving is an even greater challenge.
Fentross is well-respected teacher at the Royal Academy, The Hague. This recording is one a planned three, with the first comprising of pieces only recently identified as being by Dowland – that is works that aren’t contained in Poulton’s standard edition (some of the contents of which scholars now agree were from other pens). The current recording is of works straight out of Poulton, played in her edition, regardless of actual provenance. The final recording of the set will be of “100% guaranteed” works by Dowland (or your money back?) according to this recording’s inelegant included notes. The recording was made on a seven-course lute by Sebastián Nuñez after Dieffopruchar.
The playing brilliantly brings out the polyphony that is such a wonder in Dowland’s writing, aside from his gift for song and melody. Polyphonic music began with choirs singing multiple, independent lines. Making polyphony sound with two hands on a harpsichord requires considerable training and skill – but to do so well with the right hand along on a fretted instrument is nearly magical in its requirements. It is a question of emphasis of continuous line (mostly through fingering) and volume. The contrasting polyphonic lines in Fentross’ rendition are clearly delineated and easy to follow.
Also remarkable about Fentross’ playing is his ability to play pianissimo with warm, enveloping tone. Yes, there is melancholy here – but also great humor – as a result of Fentross’ control of varied playing through tempo, articulation and volume. The performance of the ubiquitous, “Mistress Winter’s Jump,” which is much played probably because it requires a minimum of technical skill, is laugh out loud funny, as a result of unexpected phrasing and contrasts. The playing here is characterized by clean articulation and a quiet thoughtfulness. Some of the performing is incredibly slow, demonstrating astonishing command and control of the lute’s requirements. The performances can be described as leisurely and relaxed with a kind of Zen presence, evoking a mellow sweetness, bringing to works heard many times before a magnificent, subtle, exceptional beauty.
AndyManshel.nyc 