Michael Nyman has written many fine soundtracks for Peter Greenaway films, but his music for the British director's cinematic version of Shakespeare's The Tempest (titled
Prospero's Books) ranks as one of his best. A third of the program consists of elegiac vocal pieces, which feature
Sarah Leonard's beautifully soaring, "boy soprano" voice (the inclusion of vocals was accidental, as
Nyman textually mistook the play's locale to be island of voices instead of an "isle of noises" -- a fortuitous oversight considering the charm of these pieces). The remainder of the program consists of instrumentals, equally divided between sweeping string numbers and jauntily robotic, horn-driven pieces.
Nyman enlists the talents of
the Balanescu Quartet (who have also recorded
Nyman's first three string quartets) and tenor saxophonist John Harle to form the core of his excellent 22-piece band. The group admirably deliver
Nyman's neo-romantic, minimalist score with the necessary mix of passion and restraint. Highlights include the instrumentals "Caliban's Pit" and "Cornfield" and the magisterial vocal piece "Where the Bee Sucks." The CD also includes a non-soundtrack vocal number titled "The Masque," which features
Leonard and
Ute Lemper among other vocalists. An excellent recording of some of
Nyman's best work. ~ Stephen Cook