Heavenly Love, Earthly Joy - Elizabethan Lute Songs

This reissue of two concert performances--from London's Wigmore Hall in 1963 and Conway Hall in 1969--makes delightful and frequently very compelling listening, given the superlative musical selections (22 of the period's finest songs) and the facility and inherent compatibility of the two great artists who perform them.

Reviewers of tenor Peter Pears' performances so often feel compelled to mitigate praise for his artistry with some comment about, or apology for, the voice's quality--that it's one of those "love it or hate it" voices. Nonsense. I say it's a wonderful voice, its unmistakable timbre pleasingly distinctive, its somewhat bright edge accompanied by a warm, natural, unforced, open-throated resonance. And especially in English songs, Pears was a master storyteller, shaping the musical lines with a poet's sense of textual nuance and clever inflection, often delivered with a twinkle in the eye or, especially with Dowland, a tear or two. His lovely rendition of Dowland's "Come, heavy sleep" is about as close to perfect as we'll ever hear a song sung.

Of course, Pears' partner in this recital, Julian Bream, was a master of Dowland's solo music and is more than comfortable in his significant supporting role here. Pears and Bream performed many concerts together over a period of many years, beginning around 1963 when the earliest of these tracks were recorded, and you simply can't listen to such gems as Philip Rosseter's "What then is love?", Morley's "It was a lover and his lass" and "Absence", or Dowland's "Weep you no more, sad fountains" without being grateful for this rare and rewarding partnership. The sound tends to favor the treble on some tracks, but your ear adjusts to this quickly, readily and happily attending to the singing and playing, enjoying the promise of the disc's title.

--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com