In this expert recording, singer Roberto Balconi and group Fantasyas approach Giulio Caccini's (1551-1618) Le Nuove Musiche with a focus on authentic performance practice as specified in great detail by the composer himself in the preface to the work. Dated 1601 and published in 1602, Le Nuove Musiche contains madrigals and arias for solo voice with basso continuo accompaniment and is a seminal collection in the establishment of the new Baroque style of monody which broke with Renaissance practices in many significant ways. In the preface, Caccini exhorts the performers to honour the primacy of speech and speech rhythm.
One of those releases/events that makes you feel like no other music exists for a hot minute, Dean Blunt returns with a second Black Metal album for Rough Trade, delving deeper into his entirely unfathomable yet completely approachable and direct take on visceral x melancholic folk-pop.
Jan Mikael Sørensen met Håvard Enge in 1978. At the age of 12 they got obsessed with music, and albums like The Hurting by Tears for Fears, The Colour of Spring by Talk Talk and Skylarking by XTC persuaded them to learn to play instruments. In 1986 the band Crazy Dogs (later Cerumen) saw the light of day. The band included Håvards brother Kolbjørn (now drummer/vocalist, Nan Madol).
This collection delves yet deeper into the archives of country blues, uncovering hidden gems by artists shrouded in mystery. From classic renditions of blues standards to intriguing novelty songs, this is a must-listen for any blues connoisseur.
Czech by birth, Paul Wranitzky settled in Vienna where he became highly respected as an orchestra leader and composer. Today overshadowed by his friends Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, Wranitzky was the most important symphonist in Vienna in the late 1790s. The colourful overture to Der Schreiner (‘The Carpenter’) is followed by three contrasting symphonies. The dramatic ‘La Tempesta’ contains elaborate storm effects, which predate Beethoven’s ‘Pastoral’ by over a decade. The compact Symphony in A major represents Wranitzky’s early symphonic period of the mid-1780s while the Symphony in F major is notable for its catchy themes and masterful scoring.