Search - Pierre Bouteiller, Les Voix Humaines, Alexander Weimann :: Pierre Bouteiller: De Vanitate Mundi

A worthwhile find

Philip Pogson | Ryde, NSW Australia | 02/27/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bouteiller was a composer and viola da gambist from the golden era of the French Baroque and seems to have lived most of his life outside of the artistic maelstrom that was Paris and the Royal Court. Canadian bass viol duo "Les Voix Humaines" always perform and record at a high level and this CD is no different. The sound is good, the balance excellent and the music itself worth hearing. The viola da gamba always adds something special to the human voice as an accompanying instrument and Bouteiller's knowledge of the instrument and the way it works is obvious throughout. At times the counterpoint between the two instruments is simply a delight. The motets being shorter hold listener attention longer than the Mass which is competent rather than brilliant but others may have a different experience. The Mass is performed with three viola da gambas and two singers with the gambists taking the lower vocal parts."