Dominique Vellard / Duo M&M: L'Auzel Ques Sul Bouyssou
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This programme comprises music by Italian and French composers, including Marchetto Cara, Bartolomeo Tromboncino, Philippe Verdelot, Adrian Willaert, Francesco da Milano, Joanambrosio Dalza, Nicolas Vallet, Antonie Boesset, Gabriel Bataille and Étienne Moulinié. The program centres on the Renaissance voice genres (16th century) Frottola and Madrigal and the Baroque (17th century) Air de cour. Love is the main topic, sometimes expressed in a melancholic and courteous way and at other times in an ironic and popular tone. Voice pieces are combined with vivacious and colourful instrumental dances and ricercadas for two lutes. These dances, which were originally composed as solos, have the influence of popular tradition and been brilliantly arranged for two instruments (lutes, theorbes and Baroque guitar) by duo M&M.
The genre of Frottola blossomed in Italy around the turn of the 16th century. Composed normally for 4 voices, Frottola, whose main theme is love, was derived from the secular tradition of literary homonym. The structure of Frottola is rather homorythmic - the voices move together - consisting of an alternation of verses and a refrain. This “popular” character led to its use also in the form of a simple melody sung by a low voice, accompanied by a lute. Among the composers of Frottola from this time were Marchetto Cara and Bartolomeo Tromboncino, both of whom wrote in Mantova, the epicentre of this genre. “Verdelotto” - Philippe Verdelot, a Frenchman, exiled in Italy at the beginning of the 16th Century - was a prolific composer of Madrigals, the principal characteristics of which are meticulous fidelity to the text and rich contrapuntal writing. In contrast to Frottola, madrigals present a much more complex structure with freely inspired metre and narrative content. The Madrigal also survived in the form of a lute song. Airs de cour” were a genre performed in France during the 16th and 17th Centuries, mainly by a solo voice accompanied by lute or guitar - an instrument that enjoyed the great interest and favour of the sovereign himself. Nicolas Vallet was greatly appreciated in France and the rest of Europe both as a lutenist and master of dance. He left a collection rich in music and dances called “Secretum Musarum”, which also contains music for four lutes. The lute occupied a place of choice in the renaissance cultures of Italy and Europe and we have preserved a vast legacy of solo and chamber music repertoire. One of the favourite genres is the lute duet, of which there remain many beautiful compositions. The reputation of Francesco Canova da Milano, known as “the Divine”, is still alive several centuries after his death. He was active in Italy and probably in Paris and left a substantial solo repertoire and two duets of rare beauty. From Joanambrosio Dalza, we have nothing except for a collection of compositions (1508), containing “Recercari” in an improvisational style and some very virtuose dance music. Spanish guitar music often reaches us as only simple melodies notated in tablature or chord sequences. From such scarce resources, musicians had freedom of interpretation, as we do now, to recreate these pieces and arrange variations on popular airs. Among the possibilities, it is interesting to play this music with two instruments. (Mirko Arnone, transl. by Mike Diprose)
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Tunimedia Classic 09014
Released: 07 June 2009
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