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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Matthew Wadsworth - Knight of the LuteMusic from The Varierie of Lute Lessons, 1610
Matthew Wadsworth: I used to spend hours in the basement of the library, listening to recordings of one of my great idols, Julian Bream – deciding which piece to write out and learn next. Since then, it has always been a burning ambition of mine to one day record the Varietie of Lute Lessons, and some 15 years after my initial forays into this stunning repertoire, it felt right to finally commit the pieces to disc.My choice of pieces for this recording was largely instinctive. It wasn’t possible to record all 42 pieces, so I chose the ones which spoke to me the most at the time, with a view to representing all styles and genres of the book. Matthew Wadsworth, lutenist, is in great demand as a soloist, continuo player and chamber musician. He has appeared at major festivals in the UK, Europe and North America and can frequently be heard on radio, both in live performance and on disc.Wadsworth was recently made an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music and was nominated by The Independent as a “Rising Star for 2005”. “Wadsworth's… playing… is stolid and deliberate yet strangely luminous - no light but rather darkness visible. In his hands Anthony Holborne, Thomas Morley and Daniel Batchelar's dark, sophisticated pavins… almost take on the character of late Beethoven.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2009 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Not Just Dowland
The programme, entitled ‘Not Just Dowland’ sets the father of English song alongside his contemporary Robert Johnson, who notably composed for the plays of Shakespeare, and the Italians Monteverdi, Grandi, Piccinini, Caccini and Merula. There are also instrumental items by Johnson, Ferrabosco, Rosseter and Kabsberger. “Everything was so perfect, the evening seemed to pass in a flash,” was The Independent’s verdict on the Wigmore Hall recital in December 2008 by soprano Carolyn Sampson and lutenist Matthew Wadsworth. “The soprano Carolyn Sampson is blessed with a lovely voice …and the lutenist Matthew Wadsworth … really is a class apart among exponents of this increasingly popular musical instrument.” “Carolyn Sampson’s pure soprano cossets the words, savouring their expressive implications, relishing their shifts of rhythm and subtly sighing with bliss, yearning or heartache, depending on the circumstances.” The Telegraph, 29th January 2010 **** “One of the chief delights... is the opportunity to hear the theorbo at close quarters...in the skilled hands of Matthew Wadsworth it takes centre stage, both as a solo instrument and as an exquisite companion to Carolyn Sampson's sweet, lyrical soprano...a ravishing programme of beguiling melancholia.” The Observer, 7th February 2010 “Wadsworth's lute and theorbo...craft a seamless expressive narrative...Sampson is careful never to over-egg the grief, always keeping in reserve extremities of emotion for the very darkest moments - and she never distorts the musical line by over-dramatisation.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2010 ***** “Carolyn Sampson and lutenist Matthew Wadsworth are well matched protagonists and in the main they cope equally well with both repertories. Sampson's diction is especially clear in the English selections, which come across very naturally.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2010 “Both artists respond with dark-shaded tones to a music that is touched by the aching melancholy of its time and place.” Sunday Times, 12th December 2010 *** | | | Usually despatched in 3 - 4 working days. |
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| |  | Masters of the Lute
“This is Matthew Wadsworth’s finest release to date … a gem of an album, which exudes intelligence, sensitivity and sheer class … A richly painted recital that really shouldn’t be missed.” Gramophone Magazine, December 2006 | | | Usually despatched in 4 - 5 working days. |
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| |  | When Laura SmilesLute solos and songs from Elizabethan England by Philip Rosseter
Gramophone Editor’s Choice artist Matthew Wadsworth presents the first ever recording devoted entirely to Philip Rosseter’s music. A timely tribute to one of the great masters of the lute and English song, When Laura Smiles features twelve of Rosseter’s most beguiling songs, including What then is love but mourning, If she forsake me, Sweet come again as well as the title track. It also includes all of Rosseter’s surviving lute solos, including an epic chromatic fantasy, two weighty pavans and several charming dances. When Laura Smiles continues Matthew’s exploration of music by John Dowland’s contemporaries, following the critically acclaimed Away Delights with soprano Carolyn Sampson (AV 2053) featuring the music of Robert Johnson. “Lutenist Matthew Wadsworth dazzles with his dexterity” – The Independent Magazine, proclaiming Matthew one of the Rising Stars of 2005 “James Gilchrist's supple, seductive tenor is well-suited to this repertoire: through the subtlest of expressive nuances and inflections, he breathes life into this arcane but charming poetry, most effectively in the sprightly title song, 'When Laura smiles'. Matthew Wadsworth holds centre stage in a selection of lute solos and... plays with emotive musicianship and sensitivity.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2006 **** | | | Usually despatched in 4 - 5 working days. |
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| |  | 14 Silver StringsToccatas, Partitas and Dances
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