A delightful collection
of songs from 17th century British composers,
reflecting that period's fascination
with insanity. The mad song became a
favoured genre amongst Restoration composers,
who delighted in setting their imaginations
free to write inventive and impassioned
music for the eloquently rambling flights
of fancy of men smitten by madness,
most usually caused by the bitter darts
of love. This disc brings us some of
the best of these songs and ranges from
Purcell to Blow. Most of these works
would have reached audiences as part
of plays, although Blow's Lysander,
for example, stands free of theatrical
ties. The disc opens with Purcell's
Mad Bess, the forerunner and
model for mad songs of this period,
yet, one could argue, a culmination
in the genre – a song that was never
bettered.
My only criticism with
this disc is that, wonderful though
these songs are individually, it is
a bit too much to hear them one after
another without respite, as collected
here. There is not a great deal of contrast
between the songs, and listening to
an entire hour of fairly analogous pieces
is quite tough! It is therefore something
of a relief to encounter tracks 5, Mad
Maudlin, and 14, the charming Tom
of Bedlam. These, both by anonymous
composers, are more popular-sounding
songs, lively and raucous, with catchy
tunes and foot-tapping rhythms that
make a welcome break. However, there
are also some wonderful pieces of Purcell
in typically inventive and alluring
mood (the beautifully-crafted Let
the dreadful engines of eternal will,
for example), and some gems by Eccles,
too (Cease of Cupid to complain).
Bott's voice is brilliantly
versatile, and the first song alone
exemplifies this with an impressive
change from exquisite beauty and pure
clarity to a feigned coarseness with
"Bright Cynthia"... She proves equally
at home with an impassioned speaking
passage in Eccles’ Oh! Take him gently
from the pile. Despite repertoire
that can strike one as all too similar,
Bott pulls this CD off well, imbuing
the songs with wit and intelligence,
giving dramatic impersonations of the
characters in the songs, and gratifying
one with impeccable enunciation.
Having seen Bott perform
the same, and similar, songs live at
St. John's Smith Square in June, I must
say that from the point of view of maintaining
an audience's interest, this show works
better live, where Bott is able to fully
engage her spectators with accompanying
actions and more talk. And although
the accompaniment by the New London
Consort on this CD is sympathetic and
perfectly accomplished, it also is not
as dazzling as it was live, with the
ever-effervescent David Owen Norris
(harpsichord) and an adroit Mark Levy
(viola da gamba).
Em Marshall
Catherine Bott (soprano), New London Consort
