Concordia, Mark Levy - Orlando Gibbons: Royal Fantasies (2000) CD-Rip

There's no more agreeable, melodious, or concordant sound on earth than that of a consort of viols, and Orlando Gibbons' music for these instruments is among the finest ever written. Besides its artful scoring and clever melodic invention, the essence of the music lies in its harmony, which brings sensuousness and emotional expression to a rare peak of refinement. Perhaps treble viol player Mark Levy, who writes a very interesting set of liner notes, says it best when he describes Gibbons as "a high priest of the sensual mathematics of counterpoint," a comment that makes perfect sense if you don't think about it too long and just listen to the music. This recording by the British viol group Concordia (founded in 1992) is the first volume in a proposed comprehensive survey of Gibbons' consort music. After the three In Nomines for five instruments that open the disc, the program focuses on Fantasies in three and four parts, some including a part for "the Greate Dooble Base". And when you hear this very low viol enter the scene, as in the Fantazia a4 No. 1 and its companion No. 2, you can literally feel the resonance--a striking effect that will absolutely thrill lovers of the nether regions of string sound (and subwoofers). For my taste, however, there's just a little too much bass throughout the recording, which has more to do with engineering decisions than with the inherent power of the greate dooble base.

For the first time on CD, these performers present the nine three-part Fantasies together in their "original sequence" following a theory that this is really a set of variations on a theme. Most of the selections include a harpsichord, a decision based on contemporary documentary evidence, and instead of this sounding like an intrusion, it actually works rather well. The playing is absolutely first rate, and it will especially appeal to those who prefer these pieces--often played in a gentle, gentlemanly, round-edged style--performed with assertiveness and energy and enthusiasm, with just a bit of an edge. Since most of Gibbons' consort music appears on compilations with other works and composers, and since even at that only a pathetic few recordings of Gibbons' music exist (my favorite two or three have been deleted), we should applaud this disc and trust the projected series will go forward. I eagerly await volume two. -- David Vernier