CD REVIEWS: AU PRES DE VOUS: French chansons of the 16th century

CD REVIEW: AU PRES DE VOUS: French chansons of the 16th century
published in Lute News, newsletter of the Lute Society (UK), Number 95, October 2010
by Meic Goodyear

As the title suggests, the majority of items on this disc are French. Most of the pieces are from the first half of the 16th century. The aim of the compilation is 'to explore the marriage of music, poetry and dance tunes'. This is not in itself an original idea, but most of the songs here you will not have heard before, as in many cases Ron Andrico has entabulated the performing versions from their partbook originals, and in others he has augmented simple voice and lute settings by restoring missing countertenor lines and filled out lines with extra decoration. In some cases Mignarda have used existing divisions in lute tabs as the source for vocal decorations in the recreated versions. These arrangements are available from their website, www.mignarda.com (still in print, as regrettably Ronn McFarlane's Indigo Road is no longer).

Unsurprisingly, Claudin de Sermisy is the song composer most represented, and Pierre Attaingnant contributes the greatest number of dance pieces. However, the net is thrown wide, with songs from Orlando de Lassus, Janequin, Crecquillon, Clément, Richafort, Cadéac and Philip van Wilder, a pavane and gaillarde by Morlaye, and fantasias, ricercars and preludes from Francesco da Milano, Marco dal l'Aquila and Phalese. Dances are presented in blocks in their own right; the other instrumental pieces are used as 'connective tissue' between the songs.

The mood is contemplative, and the whole thing is beautifully performed. Andrico faultless on his lutes (in G by Robert Lundberg and in E by Harris & Barber), Stewart with beautifully judged, slightly understated expression. The recording is superb, every note perfectly clear, no extraneous noise from the fingerboard, and the balance between voice and lute perfect. The booklet is informative, with literate English translations and the French orginals, and also an intriguing photograph of the duo that invites the sort of interpretation people give Holbein's The Ambassadors (OK, the skull is a memento mori, but what is the significance of the stuffed toy monkey?!). My lute disk of the year so far.

-Meic Goodyear

CD REPORT: Mignarda’s ‘Au Pres de Vous’
published in ClevelandClassical.com, November 16, 2009
by Daniel Hathaway

Mignarda Lute Song Duo’s ‘Au Pres de Vous’, which takes its title from Claudin de Sermisy’s chanson, the first track on this album, is a compilation of thirty-three French chansons and lute pieces from the 16th century, sung by Donna Stewart and played by Ron Andrico, including works by such well-known composers as Claudin de Sermisy, Jean Richafort, Thomas Crecquillon, Jacques Clément and Orlando de Lassus, as well as lesser known composers whose works are recorded here for the first time and anonymous pieces printed by Pierre Attaingnant in his 1529 and 1530 collections of instrumental music. Almost equally divided between chansons and solo lute pieces (Preludes, Ricercars, Branles, Pavannes, Galliardes and Fantasias), the CD is the sixth (nearly annual) recording to be released by the duo. Now based in New York State, Andrico and Stewart revisit their old performing venues in Cleveland at least twice a year, the next occasion being the second annual St. Lucy’s Day candlelight concert at the Shrine Church of St. Stanislaus on December 13 at 7:30.

The French chanson repertory is engaging for many ears on many different levels. Having reached this point in the Renaissance, vernacular poetry is of high quality, music has been freed from its medieval strictures and sweeter, four-part harmonies have begun to function in something resembling a tonal system, and words and music have recently come together in an new, expressive partnership where emotional content is reflected in musical gestures. Works for solo lute are in this case -- as the album notes admit -- heavy on dance forms which are familiar to many of us because modern guitarists have appropriated them for their own good purposes.

‘Au Pres de Vous’ should appeal both to connoisseurs of the French chanson and 16th century lute repertory (who will listen with sharp and appreciative ears) as well as to those who simply enjoy Renaissance music and will put this engaging recording on in the background while enjoying wine by candlelight. The performances are at the level of excellence we expect from Mignarda. Donna Stewart’s voice is supple and clear, rich in the lower register and attractively fluty in the upper, where she uses very little vibrato and always for expressive purposes. She sings with fine French diction of the period and with expert phrasing.

Ron Andrico’s finely shaped and expressively played lute interludes provide nice contrasts to the chansons, which, though subtly different from one to another, are much alike in form and emotional range, even when the texts depart from talking about the pain of love and move into other subjects like getting sick from drink -- or being rescued from Egypt (in a setting of Psalm 114 that pops up immediately after the drinking song).

For those who want to dig more deeply into the subject of the chanson and compare different settings of the same poetry, ‘Au Pres de Vous’ features three separate versions of ‘Pour un plaisir que si peu dure’ by Claudin de Sermisy, Thomas Crecquillon and Philip van Wilder, and includes both vocal and instrumental versions of ‘Susanne un jour’ by Lassus and an anonymous English intabulator.

The album, which is arranged in a “sequential program” of Mignarda’s devising, comes with an interesting, two-page introduction to the repertory and nicely-wrought translations of the texts (with a tip of the hat to Clevelander Fred Lautzenheiser), plus a humorous photo of Stewart and Andrico in their own period still life, complete with downturned lute, skull, pineapple and -- is that a monkey?

The recording (done at Electric Wilburland in Newfield, NY -- which seems to be a decommissioned church) is warm and intimate. For those who would like to try this repertory out at home, Mignarda has just released its own performing edition of 16th century French Chansons, available from the duo’s web site, mignarda.com.

-Daniel Hathaway