In this collection of dances and short works for Baroque guitar by Spanish composer Santiago de Murcia (1682-1732?), Paul O'Dette plays some pieces just as written and others with an accompaniment of percussion and other guitars based on clues he finds in the music suggesting supplemental instruments, and the resulting selection is delightfully varied. Murcia was a wonderfully versatile composer, as demonstrated in these delicate, reserved laments, formally sophisticated dance forms taken from French suites, and rowdy popular dances with Amerindian and African influences. The pieces O'Dette and harpist Andrew Lawrence-King play as solos have depth of feeling coupled with chaste restraint reminiscent of the English Renaissance lute tradition. O'Dette tends to perform his more rambunctious pieces with an accompaniment of percussion, psaltery, and two guitars. He cites the popularity of groups with this kind of make-up in Spanish and Mexican society in the early eighteenth century, and notes that the written guitar part offers plenty of guidance about the kinds of accompaniment that would be appropriate. The resulting performances are certainly fun -- spirited and vibrant, nearly impossible to listen to without beginning to move along with the music. Harmonia Mundi's sound is clean, intimate, and spacious. This charming CD should be of interest to anyone who loves Spanish music, or guitar music, or Baroque music strongly shaped by popular and folk influences.
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