This disc completes the suites ‘for My Cousin Kemble’ begun on Phantasm’s previous Matthew Locke recording (11/18) and twins them with suites from Locke’s The Little Consort (1656) that call for a combination of three viols and chordal bass instrument – hence this pleasing partnership with theorbist Elizabeth Kenny.

Two suites in particular caught my attention and so I began with an old favourite, the Little Consort Suite No 10 in D, which bears obvious comparison with Fretwork’s recent recording (Signum, 1/23). The differences are striking: whereas I find Fretwork to be nimble, deft and detailed – qualities I always admire in their playing – Phantasm are noticeably more demonstrative, being led with flair from the treble viol by director Laurence Dreyfus, and lean into Locke’s frequent eccentricities with broad and convincing phrasing. Take, for instance, the start of the Courante: a gentle pa-ta-pam in Fretwork’s performance is a more tempting thrum with Phantasm, and whereas Fretwork indulge only the second of the two curlicue closing phrases, Phantasm slow up both times in a rhetorical flourish.

I admire both interpretations but find Phantasm more gripping overall. This is in part due to their closeness, since they use only a theorbo (Fretwork twin theorbo with harpsichord) and are more closely recorded for a warm, intimate sound with plenty of bass. Special mention is due also to Elizabeth Kenny’s joyful sense of style: in the same Courante she uses some delicious strumming textures, which make me smile every time.

Reviewing Fretwork’s Suite No 8 in A minor, Mark Seow found their Pavan ‘smoulderingly languid’ and commented on how the performers stretched notes ‘to their mournful maximum’. Here Phantasm also smoulder but less languidly: their tempos tend to be faster, and while they maintain a mournful Pavan (much less stretched), their Saraband – although a touch slower – has more resonance. I particularly appreciate the marketing blurb: ‘More than 400 years later, his music remains as fresh as ever.’ I’d go further: at several key moments it’s hard to sit still when listening to this Saraband. This is a bold and beautiful recording of bold and beautiful music.