{"id":698,"date":"2006-10-10T23:06:00","date_gmt":"2006-10-10T23:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/chatteringmind\/2006\/10\/fans-of-lute-rejoice-or-not.html"},"modified":"2006-10-10T23:06:00","modified_gmt":"2006-10-10T23:06:00","slug":"fans-of-lute-rejoice-or-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/chatteringmind\/2006\/10\/fans-of-lute-rejoice-or-not.html","title":{"rendered":"Fans of the Lute: Rejoice! Or Not…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well, I’ve purchased Sting’s newly-released CD of melancholy mandrigals<\/a> by Renaissance composer John Dowland (1563-1626). It should arrive from Amazon any day. The collection is super lute-y, I hear, and capable of transporting you to 16th-century England in a flash! Amazon reviews are profoundly mixed, however, and some early buyers are “sending out an S.O.S.” So I’m wondering: Is this the vanity project of a pretentious rocker, or the noble stretch of a heart that’s in full flower?<\/p>\n

Writes listener\/reviewer Christina Roden: “For listeners accustomed to hearing material of this period interpreted by rigorously trained early music stylists, especially countertenors and the like, Sting’s sometimes tight-jawed, chest-heavy vocals may seem amateurish. It’s undeniable that in four-part harmonies, the singer, tightly overdubbed, comes across like a combination of the Swingle Singers and Queen (meaning Freddy Mercury and crew, NOT the first Elizabeth). But it’s important to remember that music of this period was routinely heard as a casual diversion in private homes, even more often than at Court…With this in mind, the overall effect is of a candle-lit, postprandial entertainment in the home of an English gentleman. Muttered readings from Dowland’s letters and brief snippets of sampled birdsong aside, it is a courageous effort, displaying heartfelt admiration for the composer and a considerable degree of earnest charm.” <\/p>\n

Sting confided this to Oliver Condy in a BBC Music Magazine interview<\/a>: “For me it’s all about development–becoming a better musician, a better singer, a better songwriter… a better person. And you improve by putting yourself at risk creatively or entering a milieu that may seem uncomfortable at first. If you think you know about arranging, listen to Ravel. If you think you’re a composer, then listen to Bach and be humbled; but know you can get better. I didn’t think the disc was worth releasing until the last minute. I was thinking ‘I can’t see this becoming a record, and me taking this risk’.”<\/p>\n

What do you think? You could wait until Amazon puts some clips online. Let me know if you get yours before I get mine. (And also, Sting will be on “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip”<\/a> next week–apparently plugging<\/a> the album!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Well, I’ve purchased Sting’s newly-released CD of melancholy mandrigals by Renaissance composer John Dowland (1563-1626). It should arrive from Amazon any day. The collection is super lute-y, I hear, and capable of transporting you to 16th-century England in a flash! Amazon reviews are profoundly mixed, however, and some early buyers are “sending out an S.O.S.”…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nFans of the Lute: Rejoice! Or Not... - Chattering Mind<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/chatteringmind\/2006\/10\/fans-of-lute-rejoice-or-not.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fans of the Lute: Rejoice! Or Not... - Chattering Mind\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Well, I’ve purchased Sting’s newly-released CD of melancholy mandrigals by Renaissance composer John Dowland (1563-1626). It should arrive from Amazon any day. The collection is super lute-y, I hear, and capable of transporting you to 16th-century England in a flash! 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