Search - De Visee, Moreno :: Pieces Por Theorbes

The best Visee

lutefan | Seattle, USA | 12/01/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Jose Miguel Moreno is my favorite lutenist because of discs like this. Here he interprets the haunting music of Robert de Visee, court theorbist and guitarist to Louis XIV in late 17th, early 18th century France. His music is, I find, even more melodic and inspiring than that of Gaultier or Mouton. Moreno plays a French theorbo tuned, as I understand it, higher than a regular theorbo, so it's less "growly" than other theorbo music you may have heard, and better for it. I would certainly recommend this over the much older Hopkinson Smith recording of Visee. Note also that this is a re-release of the original version but contains all the original tracks and notes, at a lower price. So relax and soothe your frayed nerves with this musical balm. The last two tracks in particular, homages to Francois Couperin, are incredibly beautiful."