Exquisite Melancholy

The Dowland Project have released three disks, of which I have two and the latest is the third in the series entitled Romaria. The Project is very much the brainchild of tenor John Potter, although he is at pains to point out the instrumental nature of the ensemble which on this disk is completed by Milos Valent on violin and viola, Stephen Stubbs playing baroque guitar and vihuela and the multi-instrumentalist talents of John Surman, here on soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, tenor and bass recorders. The programme on the disk is of what are described as love songs from the 12th century to the present. The emphasis is on the earlier material, the present being represented by two instrumental tracks composed and improvised by Valent, Surman and Stubbs. Otherwise, Potter's tenor is employed on Gregorian chant, items from the Carmina Burana Manuscript, a piece from the tail end of the troubadour tradition by Oswald von Wolkenstein and works by Orlando di Lasso and Josquin Desprez. The sound world is one of exquisite melancholy for the most part, apt perhaps in view of the ensemble's origins with Dowland even though he is not represented here by any songs. On the final instrumental track of the disk, there is just a hint of Surman's other side where some bluesy licks begin to edge into the tastefulness and restraint of much of the other contributions. It is nevertheless a rewarding and interesting area to develop. The playing throughout is wonderful.