Yesterday morning, there was a segment on the CBS news show (I cannot recall the name of the show), and they featured Sting and Edin Karamazv. They had them in some form of a church or chapel for the recording. This segment did not show much them singing & playing - only a note or 2, but nothing in depth to get a feel of how they actually sound. From what I could hear, Edin's playing sounded very strong, and very modern strung (obvious heavy overspun sound).
Most of it was done as an "interesting" documentary,and it did not mention anything about Sting's approach to the music. Sting reaffirmed what he has said in his promotional material, that Dowland was the "first writer of songs that we know of". The message of this segment was about how Sting has always been haunted about Dowland, and now he has taken action on it. It was all about his fascination with Dowland, not a documentary on the music, approach to the music, or Sting's style. Of course, they also had a history of Sting and all he has done. In terms of Florence Foster Jenkins, there is an excellent recording on Amazon - see at http://www.amazon.com/Glory-Human-Voice-Thomas-Burns/dp/B000003F97/sr=8-1/qid=1160999735/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-2987902-1552022?ie=UTF8 It is called "Glory (????) of the Human Voice". Listen to the first piece, and you will know what I mean. It is pitiful, but hilarious. ed >A few posters have complained about the miking on the CD. The October >8 Los Angeles Times, which I just got around to reading today, had an >interview feature with Sting, who said he wanted it to "sound modern. >Most ancient music is recorded at a distance," he says. You're in a >chapel or somewhere, and you hear it at a distance, almost 400 years >away. We recorded this very close, so you're inside the lute, my voice >is inside your head [Does anyone else find this concept a bit gross, to >say nothing of painful and claustrophobic? Never mind...] There's an >intimacy and a sensuality about that that I thought we could offer that >hasn't been done before in this music." > >Either Sting has become an expert on the thousands of early music >recordings available, or he has a penchant for unsupported sweeping >statements that would would make Roman envious. > >I'm sure it's just a coincidence, but the a few pages away in the same >LA Times issue is a feature headlined "Polishing the Art of Singing >Badly," concerning a play about Florence Foster Jenkins (1868-1944), >the wealthy widow who Wikipedia aptly describes as "an American soprano >who became famous for her complete lack of singing ability." Wikipedia >has a link to her famous recording of the Queen of the Night's >second-act Aria, which, alas, my browser downloaded as a text file, >perhaps exercizing its own artistic standards. I was also intrigued by >Wikipedia's listing, among "further references," a link to "William >Shatner's musical career." But perhaps this is getting just a bit off >topic. > >-- > >To get on or off this list see list information at >http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html Edward Martin 2817 East 2nd Street Duluth, Minnesota 55812 e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] voice: (218) 728-1202
