Search - Stephen Stubbs, Charles Toet, Concerto Palatino :: Sonate Concertate in Stil Moderno: Virtuoso Instrumental Music by Dario Castello & Giuseppe Scarani - Concerto Palatino

Not like anything you've ever heard

anonymous | Los Angeles | 02/13/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Unless you happen to be a fan of the early baroque, you may not know anything about the Stil Moderno that flourished in northern italy in the 17th century. A group of composers around Milan began writing music in direct opposition to the more conventional contrapuntal style of Palestrina, in particular. The music that resulted has this wild, rhapsodic, improvised character that is, in some ways, unique in 17th century music.



You hear some of the same thing in music by someone like Heinrich Biber, but, really, he just got it from the Italians like Dario Castello, who is featured on this recording.



Cornetto player Bruce Dickey is a genius, plain and simple. He inhabits his instrument so completely, it's almost as if the thing is playing itself. His cornetto playing has a haunting, soulful brilliance that's probably unmatched in the cornetto world...an instrument savagely difficult to play at all, let alone play well.



His ensemble, Concerto Palatino, follows Dickey's every move to perfection. Technical quality on this recording is absolutely perfect in every way. Not too close, not too distant, not to reverberant, and the complex timbres of the various instruments are captured flawlessly. Typical of Accent, a label that could not make a bad-sounding recording if it tried.



I tend to like the Castello Sonatas more than the Scarani. But both composers were talents of the highest order, and created a sound world that should be far better known than it is..although it'll probably remain the pleasure of our small cult--those of us who know the special beauties to be found in the world of 17th century music.



Buy this! You won't be disappointed."

It's been reissued!

David Drexler | La Grande, OR USA | 07/29/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you love early brass, you'll love this album. Thankfully, it has been reissued as part of this set: Italian Music for Cornets and Trombones (1580-1680)"