The Dufay Collective’s
story is the kind of musician’s fantasy
that many of us in the business dream
nightly until it actually happens to
us. The good news is that the dream
did come true for this group and music-lovers
everywhere are the better for it. Begun
in the 1980s by a lone lutenist, (William
Lyons) who, having lain claim to his
three chords for success, loped off
to London to find fame and fortune.
Find it he did as he and his merry band
of traveling minstrels have been around
for over fifteen years now, bringing
ancient music to life to the delight
of both critics and audiences the world
over.
This collection of
dances from the thirteenth and fourteenth
centuries is a reissue of the group’s
very first recording, made in 1991.
The music itself is reconstructed mostly
out of informed conjecture, as there
is practically no written evidence as
to how the music sounded, except for
a number of fragmentary melody lines
with little to no indication as to rhythm
or tempo or instrumentation.
Despite all of the
unknowns, this collection is a trove
of delights, splendid in its energetic
vitality. What a creative group of musicians
this is to be able to so convincingly
reconstruct music about which so little
is known. The key word here is variety,
as a long sequence of pieces based on
the same dance form (the estampie in
this case) could quickly get monotonous.
Yet, the Dufay Collective have managed
to vary tempi, instrumentation and mood
to give us an hour of delights.
Avie, a relative newcomer
to the fray of classical music labels
continues to show that it intends to
be a major player, consistently producing
excellently documented, beautifully
packaged and well-recorded discs. This
is no exception, and I would venture
that this is as good a place as any
for the novice listener to delve into
medieval music. I can’t imagine any
listener being disappointed in this
infectious and delightful program.
Kevin Sutton