Customer Reviews

Works for Lute

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

 

 

Bach's works for lute are simply beautiful. Some are adaptations of other works for Solo instruments, such as his suits for solo cello or partitas and sonatas for solo violin. As beautiful as these pieces were on their original instruments, they are even lovelier when played on the lute. Hopkinson Smith's performance is excellent, and extremely well recorded. This is not a classic "audiophile" recording, but on a good HI-FI system, you can hear him pluck every string. Whole CDs of works for Lute or solo Harpsichord tend to sometimes get boring or get on your nerves. this rarely happens here, despite the fact that it is a double disc.

All in all - Highly recommended. A little known Gem from one of humanity's most gifted composers.

As a guitarist I'm quite taken with this recording. The lute is very different in character from the guitar in sound and character. What I really like about this recording:
1. The intensity of feeling that is apparent in the playing
2. The ease with which the contrapuntal sections are brought out and certainly one of the best examples of this on a stringed instrument
3. The ornamentation Smith applies

All in all, a worth Bach recording to have in a lute or guitar collection