CD-Release of the Soprano Anna Budzyńska with the Ensemble del Passato
CD "Clori" with the Soprano Anna Budzyńska and the Ensemble del Passato
| Label: | Dux |
|---|---|
| Released: | March 30th, 2023 |
| Title: | Clori - "Music from 400 Years ago (1622)" |
| Ensemble: | Anna BUDZYŃSKA (Soprano) | Maciej KOŃCZAK (Historical Guitars) | Henryk KASPERCZAK (Chitarrone) |
ANNA BUDZYNSKA is a comprehensive singer, with a specialisation in early music performance and chamber music.
Over time, her interests have turned to historical performances, which she now pursues. She collaborates with prominent Baroque ensembles such as Arte Dei Suonatori and Ensemble Peregrina, and also performs as a soloist of cantata and oratorio pieces. In 2017, she formed Ensemble del Passato with outstanding lutenists Henryk Kasperczak and Maciej Kończak, with whom she performs mainly Renaissance and Baroque music in arrangements for voice accompanied by guitars, lutes and chitarrone. Ensemble del Passato is extremely active in the fields of performance as well as research.
In 2022, they recorded their debut album for the Polish DUX label.
Songs with Alfabeto-Accompaniment (1622)
From the Booklet of the CD:
"We present you with our debut album opening a series we intend to continue for as long as we can. Each CD will result from our explora- tions and research on songs from 400 years ago; songs that are still in the shadow of larger, late Baroque forms. Although these songs are devoid of virtuosity, complex harmonies, or drama of later works, they constitute charming testimonies to the musical culture of the world from four centuries ago. Being related to the everyday life of so many inhabitants of the old Italy, maybe it is they that reflect this culture more accurately? Therefore, we invite you to a travel in time, hoping that it will be an intriguing journey and that it will provide respite from our busy everyday lives."
This CD focuses on songs written down in a tablature system known as alfabeto. It is a shortened notation method associated with basso figurato (figured bass) using letters of the alphabet and other fonts avail- able to printers (e.g., +, 9, &) to represent the position of the hand on the neck of the five-course Spanish gui- tar. Vocal works written down in this system are referred to as alfabeto songs. The alfabeto notation (being much simpler) was an alternative to the traditional intabula- tion of guitar and lute accompaniment. Thanks to this notation, it was easier for less skilled musicians to per- form the accompaniment. In turn, the more proficient ones took advantage of it when realizing basso con- tinuo. According to the basic principle of the system, letters of the alphabet correspond to individual groups of finger positions, i.e. chords, on the frets of the five- course Spanish guitar. When realizing the notation with the rasgueado or the battuto technique, the sounding result of the interpretation of each coded letter group is a chord.