Marco Beasley has devoted his career, both as a singer and musicologist, to Baroque vocal performance practice, a topic that has been overshadowed by research in instrumental practice. He admits that we will never know with precision what to seventeenth century audiences constituted beautiful singing, but his research has led him to use a light tone with little vibrato and in the repertoire on this album, a rhythmic flexibility that comes as close as possible to approximating natural speech patterns while remaining within the written note values. While his singing is expressive, along the spectrum of contemporary interpretations of early music, it's on the reserved side. This is especially evident in the two Monteverdi dramatic works, the scene from Orfeo, in which the Messenger announces Eurydice's death, and Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda. In both pieces, Beasley takes all the roles (the Messenger and Orfeo; the Narrator, Tancredi, and Clorinda), so dramatically the works are flattened out and come across as narrative songs. (Beasley doesn't claim the precedent of authenticity for this practice.) His delivery is restrained, without the passionate intensity that characterizes many modern performances. Beasley sings Monteverdi's "Lettera amorosa," though, with thrilling urgency. Vocally, his performance is unmannered and natural, not conventionally operatic, a sound that works beautifully in this repertoire. The selection of pieces here is delightful; the CD also includes a ravishing Monteverdian aria by Cherubino Busatti, instrumental works by Giovanni Battista Fontana, and works by Girolamo Frescobaldi and Giulio Caccini. The ensemble Accordone, led by Guido Morini, provides imaginative, lively, and sparkling accompaniment. Cypres' sound is intimate and atmospheric.
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