Bacheler (The) Bachelar's Delight
Dowland’s great rival rises again thanks to an eloquent champion
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Daniel Bacheler
Genre:
Instrumental
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Magazine Review Date: 11/2006
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 79
Mastering:
Stereo
DDD
Catalogue Number: HMU90 7389
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
Daniells Jigge |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Pavan |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Galliard |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Monsieur's Almaine |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Variations on 'En me revenant' |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
(A) Pavin |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Fin de galliarde |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Prelude |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Fantasie |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Gallyard, 'To plead my faith' |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Variations on 'La jeune fillette' |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Variations on Dowland's 'Earl of Essex Galliard' |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Almaine |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Courante |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Volta |
Daniel Bacheler, Composer
Daniel Bacheler, Composer Paul O'Dette, Lute |
Author: William Yeoman
The music of Daniel Bacheler will probably be unfamiliar to most listeners but Paul O’Dette hopes to change all that with this, the first disc devoted entirely to Bacheler’s works. Given the outstanding quality of both the music and the performances, he can’t help but succeed.
Bacheler (1572-1619) was and is reckoned one of the finest lutenists of the Elizabethan age, easily on a par with his great contemporary John Dowland. In the service of, successively, Sir Francis Walsingham, the Earl of Essex and Queen Anne, Bacheler was a child prodigy who quickly rose to become one of the highest paid lutenists in the land, receiving an annual salary of £160 (compared with the more usual £20-£40).
Bacheler’s music seems typical Elizabethan fare, comprising dances like the Pavan, Galliard and Almaine and sets of variations on popular tunes; but the rich, close-voiced harmonies and highly virtuoso elaborations (including a dramatic use of arpeggios) soon disabuse you of any misapprehensions – let the variations on La jeune fillette (which seem half their seven-odd minutes in length) or Monsieur’s Almaine with its astonishing final tremolo variation stand as witnesses. But this is not to say Bacheler’s music lacks depth: his solitary Fantasie, which makes use of the darker-hued 10-course lute, combines profundity of thought with more restrained decorative excursions.
O’Dette’s rhythmic pointing and beautifully shaped embellishments, underscored by subtle changes in colour and unfailingly clean execution, enliven both melody and harmony throughout to exquisite effect. Bacheler would be hard pressed to find a finer champion.
Bacheler (1572-1619) was and is reckoned one of the finest lutenists of the Elizabethan age, easily on a par with his great contemporary John Dowland. In the service of, successively, Sir Francis Walsingham, the Earl of Essex and Queen Anne, Bacheler was a child prodigy who quickly rose to become one of the highest paid lutenists in the land, receiving an annual salary of £160 (compared with the more usual £20-£40).
Bacheler’s music seems typical Elizabethan fare, comprising dances like the Pavan, Galliard and Almaine and sets of variations on popular tunes; but the rich, close-voiced harmonies and highly virtuoso elaborations (including a dramatic use of arpeggios) soon disabuse you of any misapprehensions – let the variations on La jeune fillette (which seem half their seven-odd minutes in length) or Monsieur’s Almaine with its astonishing final tremolo variation stand as witnesses. But this is not to say Bacheler’s music lacks depth: his solitary Fantasie, which makes use of the darker-hued 10-course lute, combines profundity of thought with more restrained decorative excursions.
O’Dette’s rhythmic pointing and beautifully shaped embellishments, underscored by subtle changes in colour and unfailingly clean execution, enliven both melody and harmony throughout to exquisite effect. Bacheler would be hard pressed to find a finer champion.
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