Premier Livre De Piéces Pour La Flute Traversiére, Avec La Basse Continue
Navona, 2022
8/10
Listen to Premier Livre De Piéces Pour La Flute Traversiére, Avec La Basse Continue
The 4 musicians of The Opus Project come together to illuminate the work of Michel De La Barre, a French flute extraordinaire and composer, and they sure do put a dynamic spin on the rarely heard, unsung suites.
“Suite I En D La Ré, Tierce Majeure” opens the listen with dreamy baroque flute from Joanna Marsden and Christophe Gauthier’s harpsichord interacting with much beauty and playfulness across the 8 movements, and “Suite II En G Ré Sol, Tierce Majeure” follows with a soothing, breezy quality that benefits much from Margaret Little’s precise viola da gamba.
In the middle, the mysterious demeanor of “Suite III En E Si Mi, Tierce Mineure” makes great use of Daniel Zuluaga’s theorbo with much grace, while “Suite IV En G Ré Sol, Tierce Mineure” flows with a highly meticulous chemistry between the strings and winds that’s quite cautious and reflective.
The last track, “Suite V En D La Ré, Tierce Mineure”, is quite possibly the best, and radiates a very calming, poetic quality that allows all 4 players to shine with their respective talent.
A very detailed body of work, The Opus Project maintain their position as one of Canada’s leading Early Music quartets here, while shining a spotlight on the first person to publish solo flute music.
Travels well with: Benjamin C.S. Boyle- Spirits In Bondage; Michael Murray- Passages