Track Listing

1. Amor Vittorioso
2. Lirum Bililirum
3. Il Bianco E Dolce Cigno
4. La Bella Franceschina
5. Ultima Mei Sospiri
6. Alla Cazza
7. Or Si Rallegri Il Cielo
8. Fine Knacks For Ladies
9. Who Made Thee, Hob, Forsake The Plough
10. Of All The Birds That I Do Know
11. Too Much I Once Lamented
12. Fair Phyllis I Saw
13. The Silver Swan
14. Now Is The Month Of Maying
15. La Guerre
16. La, La, La, Je Ne L'ose Dire
17. Bon Jour: Et Puis, Quelles Nouvelles
18. Mignonne, Allons Voir Si La Rose
19. Il Est Bel Et Bon
20. Margot Labourez Les Vignes
21. Un Gentil Armoureux
22. Faulte D'Argent
23. La Tricotea Samartin La Vea
24. Triste Estaba El Rey David
25. Cucu, Cucu!
26. Tres Morillas M'enamoran
27. Fatal La Parte
28. La Bomba
29. Tanzen Und Springen
30. Vitrum Nostrum Gloriosum
31. Ach Elsein, Liebes Elselein
32. Ach, Weh Des Leiden
33. Das G'Laut Zu Speyer
34. Herzliebstes Bild

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19066 in Music
• Released on: 2004-01-01
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

a voice teacher and early music fan
THE KING'S SINGERS: SOMETIMES HOT, SOMETIMES COLD!
The madrigal form, as it developed throughout Europe, is chronicled with precision and great attention to detail by England's King's Singers. From its original appearance in Italy in the 1530's, the form-characterized by polyphonic texture, in the secular equivalent of the motet-was popular in England, Germany, Spain and France. Madrigals were the music of the people; they were written in the vernacular, expressed common themes of love and desire, and were often accompanied by dancing.

There are seven from Italy, seven from England ( I think they sing these best of all.) eight from France, six from Spain, and six from Germany (These I'm not fond of, but it could be that the Singers do not adapt to these as well.)

On this disc made in 1984 there are six singers: two countertenors (Jeremy Jackman-Alastair Hume); one tenor (Bill Ives); two baritones (Anthony Holt-Simon Carrington) and one bass (Colin Mason). I think that their personnel has improved in the last 10 years, especially in the countertenor line-up. To my listening Jeremy Jackman has a thin, puny and nondescript tone quality that is totally bland and undramatic. His rendition of the usually impressive 'Silver Swan' by Gibbons is a big disappointment. And it puzzles me because in 1984 in England there were some excellent countertenors available (Michael Chance being one of them).

So actually, although the selection is unquestionably outstanding, the singing is NOT.! It's not bad singing, just not very exciting!!!!Take note that the other Disc listed on this website is the SAME RECORDING.

Delightful!
For well under ten bucks, you can't do much better than this wonderful set of late 16th- and early 17th-century madrigals. The King's Singers have chosen a varied program of madrigals from Italy, England, France, Spain and German, representing nearly all of the "great" composers of the genre (Willaert, Morely, Dowland, Arcadelt, etc.). The performances are lively and well-recorded, with just the right amount of natural-sounding reverb. The voices blend beautifully. The packaging is colorful and attractive and liner notes offer a little historical background on the music and the musicians as well. I'm a little disappointed that the Consort of Musicke has been added to provide instrumental accompaniment on some tracks. Original sources for this music rarely specify what if any instrumental accompaniment should be added. 16th- and 17th-century performers very likely added instruments when singing madrigals (so doing so isn't "wrong"), but many of these pieces sound so lovely "acapella" that I find the addition of pipes, flutes, and percussion detracting. One of my favorite madrigals, Thomas Morley's sprightly "Now Is The Month Of Maying" has been recorded by the King's Singers on another CD ("All At Once Well Met") purely acapella--and I find that recording MUCH more satisfying and enjoyable than the one included here, where flutes and drums have been added without contributing anything to the music. Still, on the whole, this is an excellent recording and the CD packs a generous 74 minutes of music. I'm quite pleased.

Ever wondered what was before Bach, Lully, or Palestrina?
During the days of the Renaissance, the madrigal was one
of the most popular musical forms and outputs. The King's Singers, a modern-day all male vocal group, demonstrate the authentic sound of which these 34 chosen madrigals may have been performed. In the Renaissance, in place of sopranos and altos, there were countertenors (men who sang falsetto in a feminine range). That's what these guys do; just listen to the first few and you'll automatically be transported back to this magical and sort of other-worldly time. If you've been to Renaissance fairs, it will make you think of those, too.

The King's Singers offer 34 well-chosen madrigals from composers like John Dowland, Hans Leo Hassler, Clement Jannequin and some composers who wished to remain anonymous. They are grouped by the different languages to show that the madrigal wasn't just the rage in Italy where it had originated but at various other places all over Europe, the hub of the music world. The Italian ones come first, then in English, French, Spanish and German. The best one in the set is "La Guerre" which runs 6 minutes, and is an incredible vocal showpiece. It's even very funny at times.

If you want to hear exactly how Renaissance madrigals sound, this is the real deal.