Early Music For Meditation

Jordi Savall, La Capella Reial, Hesperion XX - Francisco Guerrero - Sacrae Cantiones (1992) {Naïve Astrée ES 9953 rel 2000}
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© 1992, 2000 Auvidis / Naïve / Astrée | ES 9953
Classical / Renaissance / Choral

Sixteenth-century Spanish composer Francisco Guerrero is featured in a reissued disc of motets for four, five, six, eight and 12 voices, with and without instruments. They come from a handful of collections published between 1555 and 1597 and show Guerrero’s skill in evoking a wide range of moods, joyful, sombre and contemplative in turn. Jordi Savall’s ensemble is well-equipped to project the skilfully wrought structures and expressive allure of the music. Some of the pieces fare better than others in respect of vocal texture and ensemble. Tenors and basses occasionally lack tonal refinement but, at their strongest the performances provide a radiant conspectus of Guerrero’s masterly motets.

Thomas Trotter performs the complete organ works of Maurice Duruflé on the world-famous organ in the Chapel of King’s College Cambridge. Thomas is a prize-winning concert organist and one of the UK’s most admired performing musicians, reflected in Her Majesty The Queen awarding him The Queen’s Medal for Music on St Cecilia’s Day 2020.

Kent Nagano and the Hallé continue to commit to CD less celebrated portions of the Britten canon. Last year there was the four-act Billy Budd; before that the premiere recording of a concert version of the radio drama The Rescue. Now come two more firsts, recordings of the Double Concerto - prepared from Britten's almost complete sketches by Colin Matthews and presented by Nagano at Aldeburgh in 1997 - and the Two Portraits from 1930. The second of these is a portrait of Britten himself, a surprisingly plaintive and reflective meditation for viola and strings in E minor. The image is belied by the rest of the music on the disc, which is buoyant, energetic, young man's music all written before Britten was 26. Big guns Kremer and Bashmet are brought in for the Double Concerto and give of their impassioned best. Nagano and the Hallé are appropriately spirited and vigorous throughout the disc. It's not mature Britten, but clearly points the way forward and is worth getting to know.

(organ of Notre-Dame de la Dalbade, Toulouse)
This is a typically eccentric Solstice release: a booklet with shoddy photography, long, vaguely political and poorly translated booklet essay, the point-blank range François Carbou recording … and gorgeous performances of neglected and evocative music. Henri Mulet has for too long been known for just two pieces, the ‘Tu es Petra’ toccata from the Esquisses byzantines and the Carillon sortie. As this collection of the complete organ works (compiled thanks to generous help from British organist Paul Derrett) shows, though, the Esquisses in particular constitute a colourful, if often melancholy, trove of delights. The young French organist Virgil Monin plays with great warmth and empathy. …
CHRIS BRAGG