Many people over the centuries have been fascinated by the story of Sir Percival. Chretien de Troyes first told it in the late twelfth century; and it is his extremely long version that forms the basis of the present recording. The Canadian musician Sylvain Bergeron has made selections from the poem and built them into a coherent narrative. Since there is no surviving music, he has adopted a series of British and Irish folk-melodies to create what is here aptly described as a mixture of ‘Medieval Play, Baroque Opera, and more contemporary musical styles’.
It may seem a recipe for disaster, but it seems to work, partly because the performances are so good. First, obviously, is Daniel Taylor as Percival: to choose a countertenor for this role is an excellent idea, since it gives a nice touch of insecurity to the character; as one of our more exciting young singers, Taylor is as compelling and beguiling as he is in any of the most standard countertenor repertory. Of the other singers, the most successful is Viviane LeBlanc as the ‘love interest’ Blancheflor. There is also some very fine harp playing from Robin Grenon; and the other three members of the small instrumental ensemble (bass viol, penny whistle, shawm, guitar) demonstrate fine musicianship.
The adaptation has a gentle Celtic feel throughout, avoiding extremes and thereby allowing the old French text to come through clearly, without fuss.'