Search - Michael Praetorius, Pierre Certon, Adriaen Valerius :: Praetorius: Dances from Terpsichore

Michael Praetorius, German composer and observer of things musical, was one of the most important musicians of the mid-17th century. His encyclopedia of musical instruments, Syntagma Musicum, richly illustrated and annotated, has in many instances given us our only description of the bewildering variety of musical noisemaking devices in use at the time. Terpsichore, similarly, is a collection of mostly French dance music that has never ceased to inspire players and listeners. It's the source for much of what we now call "Renaissance" music, even though it actually dates from about a hundred years later, and no early-music fair or festival would be complete without it. These performances, by an appropriately costumed Dutch early-music group, have the right sense of fun, and their instrumental arrangements are both zesty and colorful. Delightful. --David Hurwitz