Customer Reviews

Panorama: Dances of the Renaissance

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4 star:		(5)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you can only own one album of Renaissance music, this should be it.

Dance music of the Renaissance has been a particular passion of mine for nearly 30 years, both as a listener (I own many, many recordings) and performer (both as musician and dancer). And yet, if I selected my favorites from every album and combined them into one, it would still not be better than this one.

Not only do they select the best pieces, but each one is played beautifully. And that's saying a lot, because most music of this period was written without any orchestration notes and therefore is open to wide variations of interpretation today. So the same piece can be boring or exciting, soothing or irritating, good or bad, depending upon its interpretation. I'm delighted to say that this album has the best renditions possible.

My heart sings with every piece.

Even the most fanatical "original instrument purist" should give this one a listen. Though apparently played on modern instruments, these are nearly perfect performances in every way. Warm, appealing charm that captures the real spirit of these optimistic pieces from the Renaissance. I have modern & "period" performances of the Renaissance "Terpishore" dances which open the first disc, and some are quite good. However, this collection outshines all the others. Also bravo to DG for the great remastering. For example, any trace of noise seems to have dropped away completely leaving clean, enthusiastic performance. These musicians clearly honor Musicality above anything.

This cd is a reissue of material from several albums in the 60s. The Fritz Neumeyer recordings of Praetorius are from an old Archiv LP that was one of my first introductions to "early music", and it can be charged that it was more enthusiastic than historically informed. A recorder consort will take up one section of a tune, and then a group of viols will swirl in, maybe followed by crumhorns playing another brief phrase, and then a solo harpsichord finishing off the tune. Different instruments provide a variety of textures of sound, keeping things interesting even though most of the tunes are played fairly "straight", without a lot of improvisation. There's been quite a bit of research and rediscovery of Renaissance techniques since this record was first out, and I appreciate those, but these old recordings really get my toe tapping and remind me why I fell in love with early music in the first place.

This is a re-release of music recorded many years ago. Over 20 years ago I purchased an LP record from Deutsche Grammophone titled Dance Music from the time of Praetorius (English translation of the title). When I updated to a CD player a few years ago, the search began for the same LP in CD format. I found ''From the Vault: Dance Music of the High Renaissance'' which was the same conductor, same music selections and the same musical ensemble. However, that CD is no longer available. Then I discovered this CD ''Panorama: Dances of the Renaissance'' and it is the same conductor, same music selections and the same musical ensemble and as a bonus it contains additional selections not on the original LP from 20+ years ago. The same great music and a delight to listen to. The music paints musical pictures of minuets, powdered wigs, swirling gowns with hooped skirts, sparkling chandeliers, polished floors, , etc. A joy to the ears and the imagination. I highly recommend this 2 CD set for anyone who likes this type of music.

This is my first disc of Renaissance dance music, for which I have been searching for quite a while. I thought ir was very excellent. I have heard some before when I was in a few Shakespeare plays, and ever since, I have been looking. These selections provide a broad range of the music of the courts during the 15th and 16th centuries. There is music from all over Europe, including what sounds like Southeastern Europe. The interpretations are also very good, and they put me, at least, back into that time period. The only problem I found was the glockenspiel like instrument, which was sometimes a little annoying. Otherwise, wonderful.

This older analog recording sounds wonderful on CD, and the musical performances are well played and spirited. The only 2 reservations are that I'd like original instruments (but that doesn't negate the great recording here) and the bell/glockenspiel type instrument that is heard from time to time seems too up front and out of place. Still a great recording at a bargain price of music that's hard to find.

It,s like being back there in the court,standing there and flowing with joy. This has to be the best compilation of renaissance music I have heard. It,s like a time warp back to that time.If you dig this era, then you will not believe what you hear.Majestic, Triumphant, Beautiful...Majic.

I first heard some of these songs on MusicChoice, a cable-TV music channel, and loved them so much I copied down the album information so I could go on a quest. Unfortunately, the album can only be had second hand (at over $200); but, in searching the Amazon website, I found out that the album I had hoped to find had been reissued under a different name and at a later date. This is that music, and also includes an additional CD of music from the same time period and in the same vein. This is one of my favorite renaissance music CDs of all time.

Happy to see the Collegium Terpsichore CD out again (disc 1), though hiding in this bargain set, wasn't immediately obvious. But one listen to the Praetorius samples and knew I found it. This album was played continuously on the air on KKHI when I was in college (circa late-hippie_, and I never tired of it. I wore out my LPs. Now I've misplaced that single CD so might have to buy it again if I can't locate it soon. Phooey. At least it's available. It's the most refreshing CD you'll ever put on your player.

What a bang for your bucks! if you are into the period and genre, you will find an immense treasure here for an unbelievable price. original instrumentation with authentic feeling performances. Hours of delightful listening.