Dominique Visse

The 1994 film 'Farinelli' catapulted the countertenor voice into the limelight. Nearly 20 years later, one thing is clear: countertenors are sought after by opera houses, record companies and agents more than ever. The English singer James Bowman was one of the pioneers of the countertenor repertoire: his ability to create a luscious sound with a fluid legato is ably demonstrated in his legendary recording of the aria from Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, “Che faro senza Euridice”, and in “Va tacito e nascosto” from Handel’s Giulio Cesare.

In the French countertenor firmament Dominique Visse stands out for his musicianship. His voice takes on a biting, slightly stinging quality in the aria from Vivaldi’s 'Montezuma'. Gérard Lesne founded Il Seminario Musicale in 1985.

Today Lesne’s expanded musical horizons include both jazz and pop recordings. The American Derek Lee Ragin, took off with his recording of the 'Farinelli' soundtrack. The film’s director, Gérard Corbiau, had the bold idea of mixing Ragin’s countertenor voice with that of soprano Ewa Mallas-Godlewska, thereby creating the unique timbre of a castrato.

Andreas Scholl's excerpts from two Bach cantatas showcase his fascinating timbre as well as his sense of rhetoric and phrasing.

A brilliant new generation of counter-tenors continues to carry the torch. Foremost among them is Philippe Jaroussky; his instantly recognisable voice is of an audacious purity. Iestyn Davies, born in 1979, is a great admirer of James Bowman.

His voice combines expressive flexibility and technical agility, and these qualities stand out in his recording of an aria from Vivaldi’s 'Griselda'. The rising Korean star David DQ Lee displays robust vocal foundations and masterful breathing technique.

If further proof of the countertenors’ achievements were needed, it can be found in the fact that major opera houses now slate works with entirely male casts, bringing together up to nine countertenors! What was once just a fashion has become the cutting edge.

In the late 16th C, lute songs were known as ‘Ayres’ with John Dowland’s form of writing establishing a fashion of both composition and performance which was to last for 25 years.

The popularity of rhetoric and a fashion for melancholy spilled over to Dowland’s writing and he became one of the greatest advocates for this style.

This disc is a wonderful collection of his melancholic works (difficult to achieve as the composer himself never made a ‘collection’ as such), performed here by the fantastic Fretwork ensemble with countertenor Dominque Visse singing.

Dominque began his career at the age of 11 as a chorister in the Cathedral of Notre Dame and went on to study with Alfred Deller. He has since performed with other greats including more recently René Jacobs, Nigel Rogers and William Christie.

With William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, relive Christmas Eve as it was celebrated in the France of Louis IV.

The Ensemble Clément Janequin has already explored several times the 'Cries', those Renaissance chansons built on a vast onomatopoeic repertory. Now, 28 years after their legendary Cris de Paris, they return to the genre and considerably expand the geography of their Cries, from Marseille to Valenciennes - and with a disconcerting facility for straddling periods and styles. Hear ye, hear ye! Founded in Paris in 1978 the Ensemble Clément Janequin devotes itself principally to the secular and religious music of the Renaissance. Its interpretations of the Parisian chanson are regarded as authoritative, and recordings of works like Les Cris de Paris, Le Chant des Oyseaulx, Fricassée Parisienne and La Chasse have brought back to life one of golden ages of French music.

"Ensemble Clément Janequin recordings have long been blessed with superb sound quality and this disc is no exception…wholly delightful." IRR

"Dominique Visse and his superb ensemble offer a programme of his wonderful songs, veering from the sacred to the sublime to the downright bawdy" The Independent