Bagpipes from Hell

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
For starters, there are no bagpipes on this weird and wonderful mix of 17th- and 18th-century music arranged for lute, ceterone, viola da gamba, and lyra viol. But the playing by Vittorio Ghielmi and Luca Pianca (founder of the Giardino Armonico ensemble) on Bagpipes from Hell will have you fooled that something wheezy is at work here. It's an odd mix of dances, including jigs, and folk-inspired numbers ("Brown Haired Maiden," anyone?) that somehow blends the droning elements of bagpipes and hurdy-gurdy with the intricate delicacy of baroque composition. Works by Marin Marais, Christopher Simpson, Antoine Forqueray, and anonymous composers are included, and the playing throughout is intense and exquisitely recorded. Unfortunately, the slim liner notes on the gorgeous Winter & Winter disc don't help to explain why this assortment of music works (and the scary Hieronymous Bosch painting does little more than intimidate), but it's still easy to love. Whether traditional (Simpson's "Ground Divisions") or interpreted (the anonymous 17th-century tune "Bagpipes," where metal strings are used), this is beautiful, seldom-heard music--a little darker than that on most baroque discs, but just as delightful. --Jason Verlinde

Tracks:

The Brown Haired Maiden
L'Arabesque
La Reveuse
La Couperin
Bagpipes
Praeludium Et Fuga, E flat
Prld
Ground Divisions
La Paraza
Rondeau
Le Carillon De Passy
La Girouette
Lancashire Pipes
Twenty Ways Upon The Bells
Praeludium Et Fant, c
Vielle
La Du Vaucel

Amazon.com

For starters, there are no bagpipes on this weird and wonderful mix of 17th- and 18th-century music arranged for lute, ceterone, viola da gamba, and lyra viol. But the playing by Vittorio Ghielmi and Luca Pianca (founder of the Giardino Armonico ensemble) on Bagpipes from Hell will have you fooled that something wheezy is at work here. It's an odd mix of dances, including jigs, and folk-inspired numbers ("Brown Haired Maiden," anyone?) that somehow blends the droning elements of bagpipes and hurdy-gurdy with the intricate delicacy of baroque composition. Works by Marin Marais, Christopher Simpson, Antoine Forqueray, and anonymous composers are included, and the playing throughout is intense and exquisitely recorded. Unfortunately, the slim liner notes on the gorgeous Winter & Winter disc don't help to explain why this assortment of music works (and the scary Hieronymous Bosch painting does little more than intimidate), but it's still easy to love. Whether traditional (Simpson's "Ground Divisions") or interpreted (the anonymous 17th-century tune "Bagpipes," where metal strings are used), this is beautiful, seldom-heard music--a little darker than that on most baroque discs, but just as delightful. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

This's one of the finest offerings I've heard this Winter!!!.......2005-03-07

You can laugh about the title. The musicianship is a work of art. Not real bagpipes, either, eh? You've just been charmed. The viols and lute add character to this recording. I just count my lucky stars I was a trust fund baby... 'cause you know this music was created for royalty.

Vittorio Ghielmi and Luca Pianca - Bagpipes from hell.......2000-11-25

El repertorio de este disco está compuesto por obras del barroco francés e inglés (además de un par de solos para laúd de S. L. Weiss), interpretadas con viola da gamba y lyra-viol (viola con cuerdas al aire adicionales) por Vittorio Ghielmi, y laúd y ceterone (cittern, instrumento de cuerdas metálicas) por Luca Pianca. La parte francesa está representada por autores como Sainte-Colombe, Marais y Forqueray, y son principalmente movimientos con carácter de danza, probablemente extraídos de distintas sonatas. Están interpretados con mucho gusto, delicadeza y conocimiento de la ornamentación y fraseo. El contrapunto lo ofrecen las obras de autores ingleses (Simpson, Robinson y anónimos), con obras danzables, de carácter más rústico, y con piezas del género de las "divisions", esto es, consistentes en diversas variaciones sobre un mismo bajo. El carácter popular de estas obras está muy bien conseguido en la interpretación, puesto que los músicos ocupan una gama completamente distinta de sonidos para abordarlas, con rasgueos en las cuerdas pulsadas, y con un ataque muy rasposo y duro en la viola, que además consigue imitar con pedales a una gaita. Además, las "divisions" están muy bien abordadas, pues perfilan con distintos matices cada una de las variaciones. En definitiva, éste es un disco que abre bastante los ojos (y los oídos) para quienes esperan de la música barroca algo pulcro, bondadoso e inofensivo, pues son capaces de mostrar, con mucho ánimo y sensibilidad, la distinta gama de afectos posibles de conseguir.

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Pistols at Dawn [EP]

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No6, Op74; Sousa: Stars and Stripes Forever

The Best of Blind Willie McTell

Oneness

Hot Hits: The Top 45

Soul of the Man [Original recording remastered]

The Boy From Oz (1998 Original Australian Cast) [Cast Recording]

Natalie Choquette - La Diva

Spider [Original recording remastered] [Import]

Schumann: Piano Concerto in Am Op54; Fantasie in C Op17