The
Alfonso Ferrabosco
heard here, also known as
Alfonso Ferrabosco the Younger
, is not well known among English composers of the early 17th century (despite the name, he lived his whole life in England). The instrument played is the lyra viol, still less familiar, although collections of music for it were published until the late 17th century. This release was a pandemic project for viol player
Richard Boothby
, who spent his lockdown time well. He has thought through what makes the instrument distinctive and has delivered an admirable introduction to it. The lyra viol has a flat bridge that enables it to produce polyphonic melodies and also to play chords. The tablature in which its music was notated somewhat resembles that for the lute, and one reason it is obscure is that manuscripts were confused with those for the lute for a time. The lyra viol has a few sympathetic strings, not enough to produce a dense, complicated sound; rather, it adds the melancholy tinge so prized by listeners of the day. Although the pieces here are mostly dances,
Ferrabosco
's music for lyra viol was admired by playwright
Ben Jonson
because of the instrument's classical, antique flavor.
Boothby
, accompanied on a couple of pieces by
Asako Morikawa
, adds a slightly serious flavor to the dances that seems right. It is exciting to hear this new repertory opened up, and this recording may remain a standard for years to come. The church sound is clear enough but not idiomatic; a less reverberant sound such as that of a theater, where indeed some of this music may have been first heard, would have been more appropriate. ~ James Manheim