{"id":1103,"date":"2013-11-03T12:45:14","date_gmt":"2013-11-03T16:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/michaelteager.com\/blog\/?p=1103"},"modified":"2013-11-03T12:47:01","modified_gmt":"2013-11-03T16:47:01","slug":"mth-v-jordi-savall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michaelteager.com\/blog\/2013\/11\/03\/mth-v-jordi-savall\/","title":{"rendered":"MTH-V: Jordi Savall"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s about time I share some of the enchanting realizations of Jordi Savall and his colleagues. Despite my not including it much in this series (except for this one<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0Trio Medi\u00e6val), I do love early music. For those unfamiliar, “early music” generally connotes Western “classical” or “literate” music through at least parts of the Baroque period (ca. 1600-1750). It’s a dense, niche area that includes much unnecessary controversy over performance practice and theory. The 10\u00a2,\u00a0Reader’s Digest<\/em> summary is thus:
\n1. Most practitioners believe that the music should be performed on period-specific instruments. Some don’t care either way.
\n2. Within the former from “1.”, there’s a divide between strict adherence to the notated score – or recreations of scores – and those who include a healthy does of improvisation – a common practice at the time(s) – within the theoretical, era-specific guidelines. Or, rather, a divide between historical recreations for scholars or bringing the music to life within a similar but new context.<\/p>\n

(To dive into this topic, I suggest starting here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Of course, as with most things, everyone claims that their preferred way is the most authentic. And while I don’t get too militant about it, especially as a saxophonist, I tend to side with the “period instruments + improvisation” crowd. I suggested as much in my glowing reviews for both Rolf Lislevand’s\u00a0<\/a>Diminuito<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Trio Medi\u00e6val’s\u00a0A Worcester<\/em> Ladymass<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n

Enter Jordi Savall<\/a>, one of the world’s foremost early music performers. I wasn’t aware of it then, but when I first saw a video of his recording of Monteverdi’s\u00a0L’Orfeo<\/em>\u00a0many years ago (which I now own) he became the first “name” in early music that would stick with me for the long term. A renowned conductor and performer of early music, he and his late wife Montserrat Figueras<\/a>\u00a0and helped lead a renaissance (no pun intended) of early music, breathing new life into old styles. Their children Arianna<\/a>\u00a0and Ferran<\/a> are also accomplished performers. (Montserrat and Arianna are also in the aforementioned L’Orfeo<\/em> production.)\u00a0Just last week I purchased Arianna Savall’s\u00a0Hirundo Maris<\/em><\/a>, a wonderful album that I’ve been spinning quite a bit.<\/p>\n

Below is a live performance of Antonio Martin y Coll<\/a>‘s\u00a0Diferencias sobre las Folias\u00a0<\/em>featuring:
\nJordi Savall – viola da gamba
\nRolf Lislevand<\/a> – Baroque guitar
\nArianna Savall<\/a> – harp
\nPedro Estevan<\/a> – percussion
\nAdela Gonzalez-Campa<\/a> – castanets<\/p>\n