Gramophone Magazine
May 2019
Editor's Choice

Iestyn Davies (countertenor)
Fretwork

Nyman: No Time in Eternity
Nyman: Balancing the Books
Nyman: The Diary of Anne Frank
Purcell: Music for a while, Z583
Nyman: Music After a While
Purcell: An Evening Hymn 'Now that the sun hath veiled his light', Z193
Nyman: The Self-Laudatory Hymn of Inanna and her Omnipotence
Purcell: O solitude, my sweetest choice, Z406

When Michael Nyman started reinventing the English baroque back in the 1980s, one critic described the result as “pump-action Purcell.” This recording combines these two singular musical styles through the stunning voice of countertenor Iestyn Davies and viol consort Fretwork, serving as the bridge across three centuries.

The programme combines bold harmonies, wondrous inventions and melodies that will haunt your dreams - whether from the 17th Century or the 21st. Recorded following a concert tour of the programme, the disc includes the premiere recording of a new commission from Michael Nyman, Music after a While - based upon Purcell’s song, or more particularly upon its strikingly original bassline, with its insidious rising chromatics.

“This was a near-perfect concert, contrasting two composers whose links are stronger than many people might think and performed by musicians at the top of their profession.” - Early Music Reviews

"The Nyman performances are exemplary – crisp and cleanly articulated from Fretwork and dispatched by Davies with a vacant, unrippled purity that is so essential to the music, and must be hard won for this instinctively expressive performer… All [of the Purcell songs] are immaculately sung by Davies, whose Peter Pan voice sounds fresher and smoother than ever." - Gramophone Magazine, May 2019.