Customer Reviews

In Vauxhall Gardens

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

One of the problems with this "star" system of reviews is that one can be tied to a numerical value for something as subjective as a reviewer's opinion. That's certainly the case with the previous review--I take the reviewer's criticisms about the sound (and, BTW, a lot of EMI classical recordings suffer from that--I could play you some abysmal Angel LPs in my collection that make concert bootlegs sound good) and--perhaps--Emma Kirkby's unsuitability for *Armida Abbandonata* seriously--but TWO STARS? That's a little harsh in my books. This is a fine disc--not as energetic as, say, something from Europa Galante (but then the music doesn't lend itself to Fabio Biondi's fireworks, either), but certainly pleasant enough and well worth having. The music here is what counts, and is good enough to stand even some lacklustre playing. Boyce's Concerto Grosso is a highlight here, along with the Abel aria and the Arne cantata mentioned in the previous review. It's not really a four-star disc, either, but I'm hoping Amazon will average the two reviews and put it at three stars--about where it should be. If you pay attention to such things, that is.

This CD has a wonderful program to recommend it, all music that could have been heard in London in the second third of the 18th century and all in delightful high or late baroque style. Yet for me, the disc was a little disappointing, its only high point seeming to be Charles Medlam's delightful viola da gamba playing as the accompaniment to Emma Kirkby's singing on Abel's aria "Frena la belle lagrime". Perhaps the main reason why I was disappointed is the rather pale and distant recorded sound, something I have not come to expect from EMI recordings made at Abbey Road studios (this one is from 1988). There seems to be a marked lack of bass and resonance, making the entire sound to be somewhat one-dimensional, and the volume-level is also comparatively low, reminding me of some of Naxos's early discs. But in addition to this, I'm afraid I cannot for the life of me find anything special in the playing of Hiro Kurosaki (first violin). In the meantime, he has made a career with Les Arts Florissants and has recorded as soloist with William Christie, receiving much praise, but back in 1988 his playing sounds, to my ears at any rate, uninspired and unemotional, decidedly boring in fact. Emma Kirkby's voice is always lovely, and I hesitate to criticize anything that she has produced; but to be perfectly honest, I found her "Armida abbandonata" also rather pale: this is a piece calling for stormy emotions and a voice that can express rage and bitterness as well as regret - something that the childlike innocence of Ms. Kirkby's timbre does not and cannot put over, at least here. I found myself longing for a more full-voiced mezzo such as Bernarda Fink. And, finally, the "Cuckoo and Nightingale" organ concerto is given a performance that sounds rather lack-lustre, although that could be the result of the chamber-music proportions combined with the poor recording quality. In the end, I'm afraid it is only Arne's cantata "Delia" which is really able to convince.