These composers will be new to most people. A
hindrance to appreciating their work is that they felt no obligation
to write out complete performing versions of their music, leaving
it to the artist to fill in a great deal with improvisation. It
takes a great artist to fill this role, and such an artist is
Matthew Wadsworth. He studied lute at the Royal Academy of Music
in London with Nigel North. Upon graduation in 1997 he won an
award for the development of a system of Braille lute tablature.
His long meditative improvised arpeggiated phrases are utterly
captivating and revive the lost spirit of medieval mysticism.
Students of Eastern and Western meditation disciplines may find
this recording of interest.
He is joined on this recording by one Gary Cooper
who studied organ and harpsichord at Chetham’s school of music
and at New College, Oxford, and has probably never handled a six-shooter
in his life. Currently director of Kent Opera, he has also produced
many solo recordings of virtuoso keyboard repertoire.
Mark Levy studied at Cambridge, King’s College,
and the Royal Conservatory in the Hague, and has specialised in
the viol family of instruments since his teenage years. He also
studied with Andrew Manze had played with The Cambridge Musick,
and now with his own ensemble, Concordia.
It is a pity all the superlatives I know have
already been used, because I need a new one for this disk. The
magic that these artists are able to accomplish together is all
but indescribable. With the organ often carrying the high notes,
they join to produce a unique and utterly captivating rich, abdominal
growl. The music sounds much like Frescobaldi, consisting of long
lushly arpeggiated chordal preludes over organ and viol pedal
tones, often followed by passacaglias with the sound of harpsichord
and lute joining in the ever increasing energy of the filigree.
The last item on the disk is a long round every bit worthy of
the great fandangos of Soler and Boccherini.
In the photograph of this ensemble in the program
booklet, the organ is seen to be a small portatif, but the violone
and theorbo lute are of enormous size, dwarfing their players.
It takes the high ceiling of a medieval cloister to accommodate
these instruments.
This recording is from a high definition master
and therefore may be available on SACD or DVD-Audio in the future.
But don’t wait, buy it now. You’ll be glad you did.
Paul Shoemaker
Matthew Wadsworth, theorbo;