Here Comes That Tune Again

I love Jordi Savall's ensemble Hesperion XXI and their Alia Vox record label but have to admit that this disk isn't the most successful project they have come up with. The disk is titled Altre Follie 1500-1750 and each track taken individually is delightful. I heard one on the radio which is what prompted me to get the disk. I knew that the concept was to highlight the Folia, a Renaissance courtly dance, and the sound and feel of the music of that period is right up my street. So, I was expecting an album of items in similar dance style but wasn't expecting all the items to be variations on the very same tune. Now variations on a theme is an honourable musical concept but when listened too in one sitting, the variations here don't really provide variety enough. There are differences in instrumentation from track to track with violin, cello, viols, baroque guitar, clavecin, harp and theorbo for instance but the colours are fairly similar throughout. There are a couple of anonymous tracks together with compositions from around the courts of the Mediterranean by composers ranging from the almost totally obscure to the celebrated such as Corelli and Vivaldi. Everything is beautifully played and recorded but to get maximum enjoyment it is definitely one to dip into from time to time rather than to sit through in one go.