Guild is pleased to present music by John Dowland combined with world premiere recordings of 5 new lute songs by Peter Croton, lute teacher at the renowned Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. An additional feature of this recording is the inclusion of new lute solos arranged by Croton based on Dowland songs. In CONCERTO Magazine: “The manner in which the Bothe/Croton duo, with intelligent emotionality and natural passion, was able to uncover new aspects of lute songs by Dowland totally enchanted the audience, which exploded in thunderous applause”. In the GERMAN LUTE SOCIETY newsletter: “The few attempts to extend the lute repertory into the 20th and 21st centuries have not attracted the attention of the listening public. All the more welcome, therefore, is the opportunity to report here songs which in my opinion have the potential to become a permanent part of the lute song repertory… the audience is treated to music both challenging and refined. Bothe’s voice is a feast for the ears, Croton’s playing is lively and impeccable”. Special guest Derek Lee Ragin is regarded as one of the foremost vocal artists of our day and is also known to a wide international audience from the soundtrack to the film "Farinelli”.
"...This is a wonderful disc that successfully evokes the way we live now with a remembrance of things past."
Robert Levett - International Record Review - March 2010
"...So this is a somewhat out of the way disc, pursuing a very individual slant on Dowland, and succeeding more often than not."
Jonathan Woolf - MusicWeb International - 30 July 2010
Repertoire **** Sound ****