Marin Marais: La Folia

1. Suite en Trio No. 1 in C major Suite No 01 in C major
Composed by Marin Marais
with Richard Boothby , William Hunt , Elizabeth Wallfisch , Robert Woolley

2. Suite in D major
Composed by Marin Marais
with Richard Boothby , William Hunt , Elizabeth Wallfisch , Robert Woolley

3. Pièces en trio, for flutes, violins & viola Suite No 05 in E Minor
Composed by Marin Marais
with Richard Boothby , William Hunt , Elizabeth Wallfisch , Robert Woolley

4. Les Folies d'Espagne, for viola da gamba & continuo
Composed by Marin Marais
with Richard Boothby , William Hunt , Elizabeth Wallfisch , Robert Woolley

5. Les Folies d'Espagne, for viola da gamba & continuo
Composed by Marin Marais
with Richard Boothby , William Hunt , Elizabeth Wallfisch , Robert Woolley

Tracks:

I. Folias Antiguas: Folia: Rodrigo Martinez
I. Folias Antiguas: Recercada Quarta Sobre La Folia
I. Folias Antiguas: Folia: Para Quien Crie Cabellos
I. Folias Antiguas: Recercada Ottava Sobre La Folia
I. Folias Antiguas: Folia: Hoy Comamos Y Bebamos
II. Diferencias Sobre Las Folias
III. Follias
IV. Couplets De Folies

Customer Reviews:

One of the best "La Folias".......2006-09-11

This CD contains a selection of Folia variations from Spain (mostly), Italy and France over a period of about 200 years. Savall and his ensemble are among the best -- their playing has a great richness to it. A very good anthology -- if you love "La Folia", you can't go wrong with this CD.

Amazing variety and delight.......2005-07-02

This collection contains dances and 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 three countries and over two hundred years of music-making.

The journey begins in Spain, around the time Columbus made his famous voyages. The first variations are filled with spirit and joy and are both wild in nature and yet refined and exquisite under Savall's fingertips. After a set of five wonderful pieces, there next comes a later Spanish piece for gamba, continuo, and...castanets! This piece concludes with a rousing col legno section that needs to be heard to be believed.

Next is a great rendition of Corelli's Follias, also known as his 12th violin sonata. The volin part is played in a period arrangement for gamba, and Savall uses the treble instead of the bass viol for the part, which sounds great and offers a good opportunity to comapre the treble viol to the violin. Under Savall's touch, the viol gives the violin a run for the money! Great fun.

Lastly, we have Marais' masterful Follias d'Espangne, and after hearing them performed like they are here, what more can be said? This CD would make a wonderful purchase for yourself or a friend, and would be a great way to introduce someone to early music. This disc is yet another reminder of why Jordi Savall, as the previous reviewer so well put it, deserves to be considered among the top musicians of our day. Alia Vox does a great job of presenting these discs in great packages and with wonderful sound quality. The days of second-rate period instrument performances are coming to a close.

A master's musical magic.......2004-12-29

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 and 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 two centuries later, Savall provides a glorious musical tour of time and place. He seems almost to transport himself away from the present as he plays. Time and 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 and 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 and inspiring. This CD could be considered the acme of his performances - a judgment tempered only by knowledge of later and 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 and elevating. It's easy to see why "La Folia" is considered a "desert island" CD choice by many. Listen to it for yourself, with one you love, and endear yourself to someone by offering it as a gift. In all cases, the rewards are valuable. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

a favorite.......2004-06-13

This compilation of Spanish-insprired dance music is often in the player. It's tuneful and accessible. A similar collection by the Purcell Quartet feels more stilted and less joyful.

Tracks:

Sonata In D Minor, Op. 5 No. 12
Les Follies d'Espagne
Primo e Secondo Libro di Toccate: Folia From Toccata No. 7 (Primo tono)
Trio Sonata In D Minor (Variations On 'La Folia'), RV63 (Op. 1 No. 12)
12 Variationen uber die Folie d'Espagne, Wq118,9,H263
Concerto Grosso 'La Folia' (After Corelli)

Customer Reviews:

A unique but limited compilation.......2005-07-11

I was drawn to this album for its unique compilation of "La folia" (pronounced "la foh-LEE-ah," literally meaning mad or empty-headed) -- arguably "the most lasting and famous tune in Western music" and "one of the most remarkable phenomena in the history of music," according to a breathtakingly comprehensive Web shrine, "La folia, a musical cathedral," which explores the hidden world of this famous 16th-century theme and endeavors to list all derivations and interpretations of it. The motif, with its characteristic harmonic pattern, has fascinated composers to the present day (many samples, including many by modern composers are available on that Web site).

Truly, as a theme and variations, this CD may seem repetitive and boring to some. That would be a matter of personal taste. However, I am rather fascinated with it, even more so as I have learned of its history. Among the most famous and influential variations (and my favorites) are those of Arcangelo Corelli (Track No. 1) and Antonio Vivaldi (Track No. 4). I also enjoy the Geminiani. (...)
For a bit of concise background, I excerpt and adapt a few paragraphs from "La folia, a musical cathedral." Its roots (linguistically, metaphorically, musically) of madness, dance, folly, fertility, and pleasure have captured the imagination of many. The taste offered by "La Folia, Variations on a Theme" is perhaps not yet the definitive collection, but for those entranced by La folia, it whets the appetite for more:

"'Folía' (modern spelling; the old spelling lacked the accent, as was the norm in Spain during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries) is of Iberian origin and refers to a fertility dance in three-four time originating in the late 15th century. In music Folia meant, at least till the 1670s, a very quick-paced and tumultuous dance, in which the dancers carried men dressed as women upon their shoulders. They were literally driven mad by the noise and the stirring rhythm. The 'early' Folia is sometimes called Folías españolas while the 'later' Folia might be indicated as Folías italianas. Derived from the Tuscan term 'Folle' (meaning empty-headed) the title Follia (with double LL) is used by many Italian composers. . . . The English word Folly has roughly the same meaning as the Tuscan term. In France the structure and its variations became known as Folies d'Espagne, with reference to its presumed origin. . . .

"What is so special about this tune?

"(1) The instant appeal of the music might be explained in the human's pursuit for balance. Speaking from a musicological point of view we are dealing with almost perfect symmetry and intricate harmonic layering.

"(2) By far the most important reason is that it is very pleasant music to listen to. There is somehow an instant appeal for listeners and composers alike. It even sounds familiar when you have never heard the piece before. . . . Being captivated by the tune is of course a matter of personal taste, for there remain plenty of people who get bored by hearing only a couple of variations.

"(3) From 1672 up to now the theme has not lost its power. . . . Composers are always looking for something that will give a piece instant flavour and character. La Folia variations provide lots of freedom too because there are no fixed numbers of variations to complete nor has there to be any structure between the variations.

"(4) Finally there is the interesting social phenomenon that the music had its roots in popular culture and developed into a stately court dance; from a fertility dance for the people into a courtly flirtation."

Very Redundant.......2005-06-05

I bought this album for one piece, that being track number four. After I listened through the entire thing I found that I only liked tracks four and five, and after listening to those a two more times, I became very annoyed.
For those of you who don't know, La Folia is just a piece with the same repeating pattern. These patterns go on for one hour with this CD and become boring and annoying.
Tracks number four and five are really the only decent tracks on this album.
Don't become dissapointed with this CD like I did.

Corelli's best work........2000-09-01

This is a spectacular performance of one of Corelli's best work La Folia. I highly recomend this CD to people who like boroque music.

Average customer rating:

exhilarating!

Folias Festivas

Manufacturer: Dorian Recordings
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00005B1FO
Release Date: 2001-05-01

Tracks:

Folias Festivas: Folias Echa Para Mi Senora Dona Tarolilla De Carallenos
Folias Festivas: Son Terza Per Camera
Folias Festivas: Fant Detta La Portia
Folias Festivas: Jacara
Folias Festivas: Folias
Folias Festivas: Son Decima A 3, Book II
Folias Festivas: Passacalles
Folias Festivas: Folias
Folias Festivas: Canzona A 2/Bartolome De Selma Y Salaverde
Folias Festivas: Canzona La Pusterla
Folias Festivas: Tiento De Septimo Tono De Dos Tiples
Folias Festivas: Folies D'espagne
Folias Festivas: Ciaconna
Folias Festivas: La Suave Melodia
Folias Festivas: Recercada Quarta La Gamba
Folias Festivas: Recercada Tercera
Folias Festivas: Canzona La Luisignola
Folias Festivas: Son in a

Customer Reviews:

exhilarating!.......2001-06-13

Lots of early music types will be familar with the folia, a catchy dance form on a ground bass. Have no fear that an all-folia CD will be monotonous-- the selection of repertoire here shows terrific variety; a few are excellent arrangements of keyboard works for their particular forces (hps, vln, vcl and rec) by a couple of the players. Besides the tasty repertoire, these are the most delightful performances-- virtuosic playing from each person. I listened to it several times in a row when I first got it, and each time was more impressed by both the programming and the playing. I first listened in my car, in fact, and can vouch for its efficacy in distracting me from the horrors of rush hour. I couldn't stop talking about it for a couple of weeks, and am hoping that writing about it will relieve my compulsion to gush about it to everyone I meet.

Average customer rating:

Exquisite Baroque Music

Marin Marais: La Folia

Manufacturer: Hyperion
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000002ZL5
Release Date: 1993-11-15

Tracks:

Pieces en trio In C Major: Prelude
Pieces en trio In C Major: Sarabande
Pieces en trio In C Major: Sarabande
Pieces en trio In C Major: Fantaisie
Pieces en trio In C Major: Gavotte
Pieces en trio In C Major: La bagatelle
Pieces en trio In C Major: Rondeau
Pieces en trio In C Major: Chaconne
Suite In D Major: Prelude
Suite In D Major: Fantaisie
Suite In D Major: Allemande
Suite In D Major: Plainte
Suite In D Major: Charivary
Pieces en trio In E minor: Prelude
Pieces en trio In E minor: Rondeau
Pieces en trio In E minor: Sarabande en rondeau
Pieces en trio In E minor: Menuet
Pieces en trio In E minor: Caprice
Pieces en trio In E minor: Pasacaille
Le Folies d'Espagne

Customer Reviews:

Exquisite Baroque Music.......2006-11-16

Marvellous, stirring baroque music, beautifully recorded. Every time I play this for someone new, they are captivated. Lovely harpsichord, viola de gamba, continuo...period instruments played with vigor and delicacy. Take a listen to this gorgeous, underappreciated recording!

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