Customer Reviews

Purcell the Complete Fantazias & in Nomines

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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.

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).