Udite Amanti: 17th Century Italian Love Songs

Jill Feldman (soprano) and Nigel North (theorbo & archlute)

Linn CKD 005

Full details, track list and listening samples are at http://www.linnrecords.com/recording-udite-amanti--17th-century-italian-love-songs-cd.aspx

This is a wonderful but frustrating disc which, because of its presentation, is impossible to recommend other than to fluent Italian speakers.

Many of these songs have narrative poems, with poignant word setting, e.g. Peri's Aria di Dafne from Euridice. The pagination (unnumbered) in the 20-page insert booklet eschews parallel printing and it is disastrous. Even unstapling the booklet to try to align the words for each tracks defeats one's efforts and proves impossible...

The only solution would be for Linn to consider reprinting them on their website, not only for internet purchasers of the disc, but also for those who pay to download tracks (or the whole thing) as they will otherwise quickly become bored - I do recognise that at song recitals, as at Wigmore Hall, many listeners fail to look at the texts which are generally provided. I cannot believe that is because they know the songs well enough not to need reminders.

Jill Feldman sings with an admirable purity of tone and deep understanding of the idiom. Nigel North is an ideal accompanist.

We have reviewed both these artists separately, but I was attracted to this CD to hear them in partnership together, and hope this release will be followed by others for which my reservation is taken on board.

Peter Grahame Woolf

See also: Jill Feldman http://www.musicalpointers.co.uk/reviews/cddvd/IvesFeldman.html

Nigel North: http://www.musicalpointers.co.uk/reviews/cddvd/Dowland3North.html