2023 seems to be the year for Dowland fans. Those who can never get enough of his lute songs were blessed not with one but TWO new releases. Both Alpha Classics and Challenge Classics brought a new Lachrimæ to the market. The same repertoire, two different approaches…
Flow my teares fall from your springs, Exilde for euer: Let mee morne Where nights black bird hir sad infamy sings, There let mee liue forlorne.
Flow, my tears, from your springs! Let me mourn, exiled forever; Where the black night bird sings her sad shame, Let me live there forlorn.
Following the version by lutenist Thomas Dunford together with Ruby Hughes, Reinoud Van Mechelen and Paul Agnew (ALPHA 187 & ALPHA 326) from 2013 (and reissue from 2016), Alpha is launching a new Lachrimæ. This version is brought by Musicall Humors, again under the direction of Thomas Dunford. By means of the seven pavanes, Musicall Humors takes us on a journey of melancholy and sadness. The baroque dances are interspersed with songs. With the same melody in seven different arrangements, this musical line is guaranteed to take on a different character. Furthermore, the viol players of Musicall Humors alternate and each gets their turn to let this top line sound. In this way, a different playing style is constantly brought into the spotlight. The alternation of characters in combination with the different playing styles gives this dance suite a varied and dynamic playfulness that you can continue to listen to.
As often is the case, the score proves to be merely a recipe that must be brought to taste by the musicians. Just like the Musicall Humors version, Jadran Duncumb, Accademia Strumentale Italiana and Alberto Rasi present the seven pavanes interspersed with songs. The order of these songs differs, however, but that is only a superficial difference. The real differentiation takes place at the interpretative level. Jadran Duncumb leads the ensemble in a tight, danceable tempo. With attention to timbre, Accademia Strumentale Italiana colors the seven characters of the pavanes in a subtle, different hue each time.
There is no disputing taste and colors… but here we are nonetheless. Which of the two is now the most successful? The version of Thomas Dunford under Alpha Classics is much freer and leans more towards the vocal version Flow, my tears. At some moments you can hear echoes of Andreas Scholl's iconic performance resounding in the phrasing of Musicall Humors. Jadran Duncumb, Accademia Strumentale Italiana and Alberto Rasi, on the other hand, stay closer to the original character of the dance. With a tight meter and static character, the typical characteristics of the pavane remain clearly audible. As a great Scholl fan, I lean more towards the interpretation of Musicall Humors, but I can certainly also appreciate the subtle palette of timbres that Accademia Strumentale Italiana presents.
WHO: Musicall Humors
WHAT: Dowland: Lachrimæ
LABEL: Alpha Classics ⎸ CAT NR: ALPHA 944
WHO: Jadran Duncumb, Accademia Strumentale Italiana, Alberto Rasi
WHAT: Dowland: Lachrimæ
LABEL: Challenge Classics ⎸ CAT NR: CC 72938