Dufay: Chansons
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Edition: Music CDCD Release Date: 1996-05-21
Music Label: Naxos
Soundtracks:
- Chansons: J'ay mis mon cuer
- Chansons: Par droit je puis bien complaindre
- Chansons: Quel fronte signorille La dolce vista
- Chansons: Puisque vous estez campieur
- Chansons: Belle, que vous ay je mesfait
- Chansons: Vergene bella
- Chansons: Se la face ay pale
- Chansons: Donnes l'assault a' Ia fortresse
- Chansons: Par le regard de vos beaux yeux
- Chansons: Resvelons nous
- Chansons: Ce jour de l'an
- Chansons: Mon chier amy
- Chansons: Pour l'amour de ma doulce amye
- Chansons: Helas mon dueil
- Chansons: Bon jour, bon mois
- Chansons: Resvellies vous et faites chiere lye
- Chansons: Adieu ces bons vins de Lannoys
Music reviews of Dufay: Chansons
Music Review: 1950s-inspired "merrie" make-believe
Rating: 1 Stars
Question: What is the difference between this 1995 recording of Dufay chansons by Ensemble Unicorn and the orchestrated, sentimentalised and occasionally rumbustious interpretations of yore (by groups such as Pro Musica Antiqua [1950], the Saturday Consort [c.1959] and New York Pro Musica [1964])...?
Answer: about 3-4 decades (give or take).
Yet whilst the popular image of a "merrie" Middle Ages has changed little since the 1950s - that golden age of Hollywood "medieval" classics, such as 'Prince Valiant' (1954) and 'The Black Shield of Falworth' (1954) - unfortunately, our knowledge of this repertoire most certainly has. Suffice to say that the sound world presented on this recording is hopelessly out of touch with the last 30 years of musicological research (Craig Wright, David Fallows, Christopher Page, Dennis Slavin, etc...), which has convincingly shown that 15th-century song was actually envisaged for unaccompanied voices. On those rare occasions where instruments possibly participated, this was almost certainly just 1 harp and/or 1 lute, and perhaps, at a push, a vielle (medieval fiddle): the case for other instruments taking part in this repertoire, frankly, ranges from the tenuous to the non-existent, to say nothing of Unicorn's perennial "exotic" additions to the "medieval" mix - the "keyed fiddle"/nyckelharpa (a Nordic folk instrument) and the 'ud (Arabic lute). Similarly, the way instruments themselves are used is equally problematic, from the playing (rather than vocalising) of textless melismas in the cantus part (e.g. tracks 11, 13 and 15), to the addition of Ganassi-style ornaments (i.e. from 1535, as in track 9), occasional octave doubling of the contratenor (e.g. track 9), and lastly, the addition of atmospheric 'composed' introductions/sections (e.g. tracks 3, 5 and 17). If this were not enough (!!), the form of certain pieces has been drastically refashioned - 'Belle, que vous ay je mesfait' is a prime example (it is a rondeau, therefore its form should actually be ABAAABAB, not ABABAB as here) - whilst elsewhere, the use/lack of ficta demonstrably contradicts 15th-century writings on rules of harmony and counterpoint (e.g. tracks 9 and 15).
All in all, if you're into "olde worlde" fantasy (and perhaps dressing up in "medieval" clothes), this CD could well be for you...(never mind if it has about as much to do with 15th-century song as Ambrose Field: Being Dufay [ECM, 2009]).
Alternatively, for a more faithful - and certainly more aesthetic - representation of this repertoire, try:
1. Blue Heron Renaissance Choir's recent CD entitled Guillaume Du Fay: Motets, Hymns, Chansons, Sanctus Papale (BHCD 1001), which includes 7 chansons (1 vielle is added to a few of them; the rest are performed "a cappella")
2. Any of the following CDs by Gothic Voices ("a cappella" performances with occasional use of harp/lute), recently reissued at budget price and featuring a broad range of 15th-century secular music (including works by Dufay) - The Castle of Fair Welcome (Helios 55274); The Medieval Romantics: French Songs & Motets (1340-1440) (Helios 55293); The Garden of Zephirus (Helios 55289)
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