Countertenor Lawrence Zazzo's collection of lute and consort songs by English Renaissance and Baroque composers is performed with a twist; instead of using period instruments for accompaniment, Zazzo uses a saxophone quartet. The purist, before running screaming in the other direction, should take a deep breath, listen to a few tracks, and consider the album's virtues. First, Zazzo is a reputable artist with an impressive discography of "legitimate" performances of early music, and he has a fine voice -- pure, full-bodied, ...
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Countertenor Lawrence Zazzo's collection of lute and consort songs by English Renaissance and Baroque composers is performed with a twist; instead of using period instruments for accompaniment, Zazzo uses a saxophone quartet. The purist, before running screaming in the other direction, should take a deep breath, listen to a few tracks, and consider the album's virtues. First, Zazzo is a reputable artist with an impressive discography of "legitimate" performances of early music, and he has a fine voice -- pure, full-bodied, and unaffected -- and he sings with warmth and emotional engagement. Second, he has selected a wonderful assortment of music, ranging from the profound grief of Byrd's Ye sacred muses, a lament on the death of Thomas Tallis, to the lewd silliness of Purcell's Man is for the woman made. Third, the use of saxophones isn't nearly as inappropriate sounding in this repertoire as skeptics might fear. The Paragon Saxophone Quartet is the model of musical discretion and it plays with...
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