Jacob Heringman - The Siena Lute Book (2004)

The Siena Lute Book is the best manuscript source of fifteenth century Italian lute music in existence, and it is kept in the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague. Its creamy white and carefully copied pages yield more than seven score lute compositions, compiled in the last decade of the fifteenth century but belonging to a time about 40 years before. On this Avie album, lutenist Jacob Heringman puts together a winning selection of 26 of these pieces in an order that roughly corresponds to The Siena Lute Book set that he has been touring with for some time.
It should not surprise many that Francesco da Milano is well represented here -- he was the dominant Italian lutenist of that era. The other names are not so familiar, and many of the pieces are anonymous, but thankfully Heringman provides detailed and engaging notes about each piece played. Four different lutes are used in the course of this disc, and one of the most fulfilling surprises found here is a pair of spunky and melodious anonymous lute duets, played with Lynda Sayce. Moreover, if the 26 tracks here are not enough for you, the CD contains information as to how one might download three more from the web.
The recording, made at the Church of St. Michael and All Angels in Saint Tew, Oxfordshire, is resonant but not too distant -- for much of the disc the listener almost feels inside of the instrument, an ideal perspective for the lute, which is naturally quiet and sometimes difficult to hear even in a live context. Heringman's playing is rhythmic, emotionally articulate, and never loses sight of the arcane dance steps that propel so much of this literature. Avie's The Siena Lute Book is the best lute recital disc that has emerged since Ronn MacFarlane's work for Dorian in the 1990s, and fans of the lute should not want to resist it.