Zillo Medieval April 2011
Ballads, dances, satirical
and songs of adulation from Elizabethan England. The
English/Danish/German trio Pantagruel reveal on their new album, a
fascinating portrait of an idiosyncratic age that transmuted their
flesh and blood sovereign into the queen of a faerie kingdom. It was in
part to legitimize the rule of this “mere” woman, that tunesmiths cast
her as a mythological figure, particularly those emanating from the
King Arthur saga. Appearing alongside these musical curtsies are
amorous songs, including well-known Ayres by John Dowland (“I Saw My
Lady Weep”) but also lesser known ditties. All of them offer the
soprano Anna Maria Wierød a perfect opportunity to display her dazzling
voice. With her restrained use of vibrato it fits perfectly with the
natural historically informed approach of the ensemble. Mark Wheeler
shines as the erudite lutenist, Dominik Schneider adds delightful
accents with his flute. All in all, Pantagruel abduct the listener so
skillfully into this bygone era, that it only seems fitting, that the
musicians should also be thus appareled . These are not costumes, they
are just the uniforms of three passionate performers who have taken on
the responsibility of bringing the Renaissance to life for us all. Christoph Kutzer
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