Grace Davidson’s pure, crisp soprano voice has made her an invaluable part of the UK’s choral scene. Here she uses it to great effect in John Dowland’s songs, accompanied by master lutenist David Miller. Dowland’s First Booke of Songes or Ayres was hugely popular in 17th-century England and beyond; no other composer had come close to his brilliance with harmony, rhythm, and counterpoint—and his skill with word-setting. Davidson and Miller bring a fresh innocence to this music, the passionate “Now, Oh Now I Needs Must Part” all the more powerful for its subtle expressiveness. The resigned “Come, Heavy Sleep” is performed with stunning simplicity while “Can She Excuse My Wrongs with Virtue’s Cloak?” has a beautiful rhythmic nuance.
- The Marian Consort, Rose Consort of Viols & Rory McCleery
- Paul Hillier & Theatre of Voices
- VOCES8 & Les Inventions
- Peter Phillips & The Tallis Scholars
- Ellen Hargis, Paul O'Dette, Andrew Lawrence-King & Hille Perl
- Orlando Consort, Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir & Paul Hillier
- Oxford Camerata, Jeremy Summerly, Radio Svizzera Choir, Lugano, Caterina Trogu, Daniele Carnovich, Mario Cecchetti, Roberta Invernizzi, Roberto Balconi, Diego Fasolis, Accademia Instrumentale Italiana, Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca, Ars Nova, Bo Holten, Hervé Niquet, Le Concert Spirituel, Oxford Schola Cantorum, Gary Cooper, Bologna Cappella Musicale di St. Petronio, Sergio Vartolo, Tonus Peregrinus & Antony Pitts