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« "Kip Hawley is an Idiot" | Main | Good fences make good neighbors? » October 01, 2006Purusing PurcellI can think of no more enjoyable a way to spend one's Sunday afternoon than a concert of Purcell - on period instruments. This afternoon marked the first public concert of the year for the Indiana University School of Music's Baroque Orchestra, one of the few orchestras in the nation devoted solely to the baroque genre. During the past twenty years period recordings and performances have come into something of a hayday. Ensembles like the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and the Hilliard Ensemble have brought a much-needed resurrection of Bach, Purcell, Blow, and Teleman, just to name a few. While the classics like Hans Hotter and Fischer Dieskau will never wither, the purity and originalism of period performances breath life, missing for a few centuries, into the music. This afternoon's concert was devoted to Henry Purcell (1659-95), and more particularly his masques, or semi-operas. The instrumentation included varied viols, lutes, harpsicord, and varied recorders. The performance was a treat for the ear and the imagination. Brava, Scarlett. I posit that Purcell's musical genius (not to mention Bach's) is reason enough for allowing music to simmer for a half century before declaring it brilliant. Although Purcell's music was esteemed during his life (he served as organist of the Chapel-Royal and Westminster), within thrity years of his death his music had fallen out of favor. Perhaps it was the nature of the Hanoverian Court, perhaps it is the nature of society's demand for the "latest" in music. That Purcell was the darling of London during the gilded decade following the Glorious Revolution is no surprise - that his music would be on a Bloomington stage 300 years later strains credulity. Purcell's restoration took some 250 years; some claim it was complete in the opening measures of Peter Townshend's "Pinball Wizard." Posted by Seth Zirkle at October 1, 2006 11:31 PM CommentsThanks Seth. I know you have enjoyed my concerts equally as well.. be it baroque, romantic, or modern music ;) As Stanley says, "Let us try to be like the Hilliard Ensemble and not play like all of this mushy orchestral playing that tends to go on at IU". Posted by: pugsley at October 2, 2006 11:31 AM | permalink Post a comment |
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