:: Ensembles

:: Ciconia Ensemble ::

The Ciconia Ensemble is dedicated to the music of the late 14th/early 15th centuries, especially the so-called Ars Subtilior, that uniquely difficult and wonderful music that flourished briefly in France and northern Italy. The group consists of Anna Maria Friman (soprano), John Potter (tenor), Susanna Pell and Jacob Heringman (lutes & vielles) and made its debut in York in 2006. Programmes have included music by Ciconia himself, including rarely heard masses and motets, as well as troubadour songs and Minnelieder. The group’s performance of an all-Machaut programme entitled La Parole et la Puissance: Guillaume de Machaut and the way to eternity in the 2007 Kultursommer Rheinland-Pfalz Festival was recorded by SWF; copies are available from Robert White Artist Management.

 

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:: The Sound & The Fury ::

The Sound & the Fury is a group of German and English singers dedicated to the recording (and occasional performance) of C15 Franco-Flemish polyphony. The project is the result of a collaboration between Bernhard Trebuch (of ORF) and the artists Muntean & Rosenblum. Recordings normally take place at Kloster Mauerbach (Vienna); the list of CDs is now into double figures and includes well-known figures such as Ockeghem and Obrecht, but also lesser known (but equally distinguished) composers such as Faugues, Caron and Pierre de la Rue.

Todd McComb chose the Caron recording as his CD of the year http://www.medieval.org/music/early/09.html

 

The first Obrecht album was a runner up, as several S&F albums have been in previous years.

Gombert 3 is now available from the ORF Shop >

The complete S&F discography so far:

Guillaume Faugues: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 3025)

Jacob Obrecht I: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 3048)

Johannes Ockeghem 1: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 3024)

Nicolas Gombert 1: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 463)

Nicolas Gombert 2: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 3006)

Nicolas Gombert 3: The Sound and the Fury
(ORF Edition Alte Musik CD 3077)


Forthcoming: Faugues 2; Pierre de la Rue
All the recordings are produced by Bernhardt Trebuch of ORF and supported by the artists Muntean & Rosenblum.

The Faugues and Obrecht 1 CDs are reviewed at length by Fabrice Fitch in the August edition of Early Music

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:: Gavin Bryars ::

 

Live at Punkt (GB Records BCGBCD15)
Incipit Vita Nova (ECM New Series 1533 445 351-2)
Gavin Bryars Cadman Requiem (Point 462 511-2)
Lockerbie Memorial Concert (GB Records BCGBCD03)

 

John Potter has worked with Gavin Bryars since the Hilliard Ensemble began its association with him with the commissioning of Glorious Hill in the late 80s. The Cadman Requiem and the first two Books of madrigals followed (the second being a joint project with Trio Mediaeval and the three Hilliard tenors). After John left the Hilliards Red Byrd commissioned the Third Book of Madrigals for three voices and lute. John joined the Gavin Bryars Ensemble in 2004 and together with Anna Maria Friman has probably premiered more of Bryars’ vocal work than any other singer. Bryars’ most recent vocal works have included the Opera North/Royal Shakespeare Sonnets project entitled Nothing Like the Sun (performed most recently at London’s Purcell Room) and several new Laude. The Gavin Bryars Ensemble performs the composer’s music all over the world. More info is available at www.gavinbryars.com

 

You can hear an excerpt from Lauda 27: L’alto Prençe Archangelo with Arve Henriksen (trumpet), James Woodrow (electric guitar), Morgan Goff (viola) and Gavin Bryars (bass) here: