Greensleeves: Folk Music of the British Isles

by Armonico Consort, Christopher Monks

Overview

The booklet notes to the CD release of this album by the Armonico Consort not only state the project's aims concisely, but are also entertaining enough to merit quoting at length: "I first began my fascination with folk melody whilst a music scholar at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where the choir would often sing arrangements to entertain the hordes of inebriated dons after feasts," writes director Christopher Monks. "These arrangements -- often brilliant, eye opening, and sometimes little gems of genius -- were written by my director of studies, Dr. Geoffrey Webber. Quite simply, he took on the work of Vaughan Williams and gave it a new harmonic language inspired by music from the late 20th century." Webber is the author of the largest number of folk song arrangements here (all are a cappella); others come from various composers including Monks himself. The title track is elegant, but a better place to start sampling to get a feel for the tonality of the music is perhaps Sweet Kitty (track 6,), another Webber arrangement. Several pieces, by Stanford, Thomas Morley, and Robert Pearsall, are not folk songs, but are familiar enough to be such, and they function nicely as little touchstones in a program that is far from the set of folk favorites you might imagine. Monks and his ten-voice Armonico Consort achieve a precise sound that brings out the small details that make these arrangements interesting. A rather specialized release, perhaps one for enthusiasts who love the tradition of British choral singing, but one that may also be recommended to all. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	06/10/2016
Label:	SIGNUM CLASSICS
UPC:	0635212044728

Tracks

1. Lisa L¿¿n
2. The Blue Bird
3. The Banks of My Own Lovely Lee
4. She Moved Through the Fair
5. Lay a Garland
6. Sweet Kitty
7. Suo G¿¿n
8. I Love My Love
9. Dadl Dau
10. Now Is the Month of Maying
11. An Rosen Wyn
12. Greensleeves
13. Loch Lomond
14. O Love, 'Tis a Calm Starry Night
15. Wraggle Taggle Gipsies, O!

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Armonico Consort   Primary Artist,Ensemble,Choir/Chorus
Christopher Monks   Primary Artist,Conductor
Francis Brett   Bass (Vocal)
Clara Kanter   Alto (Vocals)
Philippa Murray   Soprano (Vocal)
Eloise Irving   Soprano (Vocal)
Matthew Vine   Tenor (Vocal)
Guy Simcock   Tenor (Vocal)

Technical Credits

John Taylor   Editing,Engineer,Producer
Charles Villiers Stanford   Composer
Peter Marsh   Photography
Ralph Vaughan Williams   Composer
Gustav Holst   Arranger
Toby Young   Arranger
Geoffrey Webber   Composer,Arranger
Philip Borg-Wheeler   Liner Notes
Christopher Monks   Liner Notes,Producer,Arranger
Patrick Hadley   Composer
Thomas Morley   Composer