Lute Duo

The plectrum lute duo was one of the most popular ensembles for professional instrumentalists in late 15th-century Western Europe. This recording presents for the first time the bulk of a surviving repertoire that can arguably be considered for the lute duo, performed on two equal plectrum lutes or with a combination of lute and gittern - a smaller member of the lute family.

O muse, comt nv voort: Dutch Songs of Love and Freedom from Aliud Records is an anthology of the Dutch contrafact and contains poetry set to music. The songs are performed by Duo Seraphim featuring Margot Kalse (Mezzo Soprano) and Elly Van Munster (Lute).

Works by Béla Bartók, Johannes Brahms, Federico García Lorca and João Luiz.

Works by Béla Bartók, Johannes Brahms, Federico García Lorca and João Luiz.

Works by Béla Bartók, Johannes Brahms, Federico García Lorca and João Luiz.

The plectrum lute duo was one of the most popular ensembles for professional instrumentalists in late 15th-century Western Europe. This recording presents for the first time the bulk of a surviving repertoire that can arguably be considered for the lute duo, performed on two equal plectrum lutes or with a combination of lute and gittern - a smaller member of the lute family. The album, inspired by the Ferrarese virtuoso Pietrobono dal Chitarino (c. 1417–1497), acclaimed in his lifetime as ‘the foremost lutenist in the world’, includes the earliest printed lute duos by Francesco Spinacino and Joan Ambrosio Dalza and the two-voice instrumental works by Johannes Tinctoris. The often highly ornamented instrumental duos are mostly reworkings of songs, some of which are given here in a performance with the singer Grace Newcombe to provide the context for the lute arrangements that follow.

Nguyên Lê's collaborates with vocalist Ngô Hồng Quang on Hà Nội Duo, an apparent study in contrasts as the two Vietnamese artists could not have had more different upbringings and musical education. And yet they found they had common goals, to express and share the soul of Vietnam with the wider world, bringing together the roots and the future of Vietnamese music. They each contribute three original songs to the album, rounded out by four traditional numbers. The duo is joined on various tracks by trumpeter Paolo Fresu, koto player Mieko Miyazaki and tabla player Prabhu Edouard.

Silvius Leopold Weiss was without doubt one of the most important players and composers for the lute, he wrote an immense oeuvre for his instrument, which is still frequently played today. His flute sonatas have only survived in a lute tabulatura (the London Manuscript), and were reconstructed, extracting the solo flute part from the score by the artists, flutist Stefano Sabene and lutenist Mario dAgosto. The result is beautiful: flute cantilenas against the rich continuo of the lute, a valuable addition to the repertoire! The booklet contains a detailed description of the reconstruction process, liner notes and artist biographies.

For those who are new to an instrument, the first question is often: where to start? The ‘Best Loved’ series offers an easy answer to that question and a perfect introduction to the wonderful, varied world of classical music. Spotlighting individual instruments in some of the best-loved pieces ever written, and with a mix of solo, chamber and orchestral works, the series provides a convenient introduction to classical music’s infinite variety of instrumental sounds and styles.