Jordi Savall - La Folia 1490-1701 (1998) [2003 SACD]

This collection contains dances & variations written on an old Spanish dance pattern. While the entire disc can be said to include only a handful of different harmonies, the endless sets of variations are anything but boring. Instead, they constitue a musical journey that takes you through 3 countries & over 200 years of music-making.

Jordi Savall’s special talent for reviving lost or obscure music is no better illustrated than by this album. The “Folia” are country dances, sometimes frenetic in their rendition, other times sedate & even-paced. The full range of those characteristics are presented in this collection of interpreters of the “folia” idiom. From Roderigo Martinez in the last years of the 15th Century to the Versailles Court musician Marin Marais 2 centuries later, Savall provides a glorious musical tour of time & place. He seems almost to transport himself away from the present as he plays. Time & space are compressed to an environment limited only by the music’s expressiveness. With the roots in peasant dances, that’s a wide space which Savall fills with delightful playing. The broad spectrum of styles in the pieces grant this CD an equally expansive audience.
Savall’s group, whose renditions of these pieces can only be described as exquisite, is the core of later ensembles. Each member brings a strong sense of the professional to the music. Even given such a background team, it is Savall’s rich, precise & meaningful use of the da gamba that rightly predominates. He is an undisputed master of evoking the fullest expression the instrument can produce. The music leaves the listener breathless even when but seated as an audience. What must it be like for a professional dance troupe to perform to these sometimes frantic tones? The entire performance is dazzling & inspiring. This CD could be considered the acme of his performances – a judgment tempered only by knowledge of later & even more glorious releases.
Alia Vox has taken the lead in producing the most superior of recording techniques for Savall’s musical skills. Savall is more than just the leading viola da gambist in the world. He could be elevated to the finest musician without overreaching his abilities. The sounds are crisp & elevating. It’s easy to see why “La Folia” is considered a “desert island” CD choice by many. Listen to it for yourself, with 1 you love, & endear yourself to someone by offering it as a gift. In all cases, the rewards are valuable.


Tracks:

01-Folia: Rodrigo Martinez 1490
02-Diego Ortiz – Recercada Quarta sobre la Folia
03-Antonio de Cabezón – Folia: Para quien crié yo cabellos
04-Diego Ortiz – Recercada Ottava sobre la Folia
05-Juan del Enzina – Folia: Hoy comamos y bebamos
06-Antonio Martín y Coll – Diferencias sobre las Folias
07-Arcangelo Corelli – Follias
08-Marin Marais – Couplets de Folies

Personnel:

Jordi Savall, viola de gamba
Rolf Lislevand, guitar, théorbe
Michael Behringer, harpsichord, organ di Legno, claviorganum
Arianna Savall, triple harp
Bruno Cocset, basse de violon
Pedro Estevan, percussion
Adela Gonzales-Campa, et grelots castagnettes (rattles)