Viole

The successful film Tous les matins du monde had the undisputed merit of bringing the world’s attention to the figure of Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe and to the viola da gamba in general, since Sainte-Colombe provided substantial contributions to the repertoire of this instrument. Still, the film’s plot was explicitly (and fully legitimately) grounded on a fictional work, a novel telling the history of Sainte-Colombe with references to what was, by then, known about him. Fortunately, a virtuous circle was ignited by the film, prompting new and meticulous research on his figure and effectively bringing to light some hard facts about his life.

Marin Marais published his Quatrième Livre de Pièces de Viole two years after the death of Louis XIV, establishing himself as the undisputed master of the genre and providing pieces not only for musicians who had achieved some skill on the viol but also for the most virtuoso players. Here Marais reshaped the classical forms, altering the traditional sequence for the suites and making an increasing use of character pieces. The sometimes whimsical imagery and the new freedom of form that these pieces contain reach their peak in the astonishing Suitte d'un goût étranger; these thirty or so pieces employ as yet unheard-of keys and offer a multitude of characters and representations that can tend towards the exotic. Breaking further new ground, and somewhat influenced by the Italian trio, Marais ended the Quatrième Livre with two suites for three viols, a genre he claimed to be new to France.

There is nothing left wanting in these performances. Hantaï and Verzier both display adroit virtuosity, possess warm tones but distinctive approaches, and share a telepathic sense of interplay, all excellent qualities in these intimate chamber works. Brother Pierre Hantaï on the keyboard sticks with them throughout, following them even in the most tempo rubato-saturated Sarabande. The lion's share of the pieces here are in the standard stylized Baroque dance forms, but Marais' expressive melodies, pungent harmonies, and highly individual take on the forms make each piece unique.

Here is the start of a great adventure: the complete recording of the five books of pièces de viole of Marin Marais. The First Book, published in 1686, contains a dozen suites, two of which are scored for two bass viols and continuo. It also features a very moving Tombeau for ‘Monsieur Méliton’, probably one of Marais’s teachers, and a set of variations on a theme given to the composer by an ‘estranger’, which foreshadows one of the principal compositions of his Second Book, the Couplets des Folies d’Espagne.

Johann Sebastian Bach's sonatas for viola da gamba and obbligato harpsichord belong to those central works of the gamba repertory with which every generation, every ambitious player, must come to terms anew. Their technical demands and compositional complexity make the sonatas' interpretation a delicate task and, at the same time, a major challenge.

Jordi Savall - Marin Marais - Suitte D'un Gout Etranger, Pieces De Viole Du IV Livre, 1717 (2006) {2CD Set, Alia Vox AVSA 9851}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (image)+CUE+LOG -> 576 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 257 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 630 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2006 Alia Vox | AVSA 9851 A+B | DSD mastering
Classical / Chamber Music / Baroque

French composer Marin Marais (1656-1728) was remarkably prolific, writing nearly 600 compositions for viola da gamba, as well as many operas. One of his major collections of music for the gamba is Suitte d'un Gôut Etranger, a collection of 33 short works written, according to the composer, "to stretch the skill of those who do not like easy pieces." Jordi Savall, the most acclaimed gamba player of the late twentieth and early twenty first centuries, who is responsible for bringing many of Marais' works to light, plays with extraordinary virtuosity and expressiveness.

Andreas Scholl's singing has been developing year by year. In this more recent release, his singing style moved more and more towards pure art with no traces of pretenses or technical showmanship, no excessive vibrato or wild coloraturas. He did not even need to target at 'perfect vocal production'. All these have become secondary stuff when you reach this level of artistry. The other-wordliness of this album has to be heard to be catched.

“The most substantial pieces here are the set of variations of La folia, and the Tombeau pour M-deSte Colombe in memory of Marais's mentor. His idiom embodies a paradox that's peculiarly French, in that it demands a very high technical standard, yet its proper expression requires the utmost restraint. The young Finnish viol-player, Markku Luolajan-Mikkola, is a founder-member of Phantasm. Here he holds his own with elegance and reserve, although in the slower pieces one might have wished for more rhythmic flexibility. The continuo section consists of another viol-player, and a theorbo or harpsichord (though in the variations on La folia, the two are combined). This works well for the most part, though the high partials of the harpsichord tend to drown the viols: the lute is far less obtrusive…”

Massimo Lonardi avait bien enregistré un album assez réussi, consacré lui aussi à la fois à Milano et Borrono, mais cet album de Paolo Cherici, de toute facon plus disponible, est la meilleure facon de découvrir Pietro Paolo Borrono, un des compositeurs majeurs du XVIe siècle italien, particulièrement réputé pour ses danses, et un des plus oubliés au disque (même s'il est régulièrement cité dans les anthologies via une ou deux pièces) maintenant que presque tous les autres grands luthistes, hormis Dalza (même si le même Paolo Cherici a enregistré un très bon album Dalza - Spinacino chez Pan classics), ont eu droit à leur disque dédié: Spinacino, Dall'Aquila, Capirola, Alberto da Ripa… et bien sûr Milano dont la discographie est maintenant riche.