Purcell the Complete Fantazias & in Nomines [Import]

Fretwork (Artist, Performer), Purcell (Composer), none (Conductor) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Fretwork
• Conductor: none
• Composer: Purcell
• Audio CD (May 12, 2009)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Harmonia Mundi
• ASIN: B001OBV9W2
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #147,964 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ONCE MORE, WITH INNER DETAIL, September 7, 2009

By 

Kerry Leimer (Makawao, Hawaii United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Purcell the Complete Fantazias & in Nomines (Audio CD)

Fretwork released this suite of Purcell works in 1995 on Virgin's Veritas label. This time out these new performances are a bit shorter, a bit more deliberate, perhaps even more authoritative, if that's possible where Fretwork is concerned. But the biggest change will be found in the recording itself. A vastly improved soundstage offers more than enough detail for the listener to de-strand the many closely woven lines. Loaded with lots of rosin and stringy warmth, an airiness to the playing, better, purposeful dynamics and presence all arrive with the typically immaculate and moving execution Fretwork is known for. I'm not sure what moved Fretwork to revisit this music other than its enduring melancholy and the chance to take advantage of vast improvements in digital recording. And those reasons prove to be more than enough justification. If you've had the Veritas version on the shelves since 1995, don't hesitate to join Fretwork in revisiting these intimate and timeless works. If you haven't, this is an excellent recording of works that epitomize both the period and the abilities of one of the England's most distinctive early composers in a recording that features the ideal combination of a detailed and alive performance captured by detailed and wide awake production.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as their earlier version on Virgin Classics, January 12, 2011

By 

Stephen Grabow (Lawrence, Kansas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Purcell the Complete Fantazias & in Nomines (Audio CD)

I was looking forward to an even better recording of this beautiful music by Fretwork because I so much enjoyed their earlier recording on Virgin Classics. Having listened to both side by side I have concluded that the sound on the earlier version is preferable: slightly warmer, less astringent and more poetically performed. Sometimes it's best to leave well enough alone. And besides, the earlier recording came in a jewel box case, not a thin cardboard folder (although the newer cover illustration is visually superior to the earlier one).