Hesperion XX, Jordi Savall - Henry Purcell: Fantasias For The Viols, 1680 (2008) [SACD]

Here is a reissue of importance on SACD. In the new collection entitled “Héritage” containing Henry Purcell’s Fantasies for Violas by Jordi Savall and Hesperion XX, this remastering is dedicated to two musicians who died too young, Eunice Brandao and Sophie Watillon, and who participated in the original recording in 1994. “The Fantasy for a group of violas,” states Harry Halbreich in a remarkable booklet accompanying the recording, “is one of the glories of English music, and this repertory, unique in its genre, covering nearly two centuries, represents instrumental chamber music that is the most perfect and the most refined in Europe before the era of the classic string quartet. Between the beginning of the 16th century and the end of the 17th, these “Fancies” number in the hundreds, and the greatest masters of the time, Byrd, Gibbons, Lawes, Jenkins, Locke and many others, wrote admirable ones.” The Fantasies for Violas by Purcell, fifteen in all, were actually underestimated by the composer himself who thought that these pieces would have no public. Today, with this exemplary reissue, it’s a new world we discover. The tone of each instrument is finally revealed in its sonic fullness, and the musicians’ playing breathes unshackled. Here then is a recording where depth and beauty share the high spirits of the moment.