Dorothee Mields

Laus Polyphoniae 2024, Antwerp

~ Andrew Benson-Wilson

Laus Polyphoniae 2024
“VOX\VOCES, monophonic\polyphonic”
Antwerp, Flanders
23 August – 1 September 2024


Antwerp’s annual Laus Polyphoniae festival, as the name suggests, is devoted to music from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, a period when polyphony was paramount. This year’s festival had the banner of VOX\VOCES, monophonic\polyphonic reflecting an investigation of links between monophonic and polyphonic music during the period. As usual, it was organised by AMUZ (Flanders Festival Antwerp) from its base centred around the baroque St. Augustine Church in the centre of Antwerp. An introductory essay to the festival and clickable details of all the events can be found here. The festival lasted for 11 days, but I was only able to review the first four days. which included the International Young Artist’s Presentation (IYAP) on the first Saturday, reviewed here.

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Basevi Codex

~ Andrew Benson-Wilson

Basevi Codex
Music At the Court of Margaret of Austria
Dorothee Mields, Boreas Quartett Bremen
AUDITE 97.783. 61’30


What a beautiful recording. Outstanding singing from Dorothee Mields, exquisitely delicate recorder playing from the Boreas Quartett Bremen, fascinating early 16th-century music from a little-known source, and an insight into the musical world of the Burgundian court in Mechelen. Despite a lovely back story to the CD and the music, this is one of those recordings that you can just lie back and listen to for sheer musical pleasure. If relaxed wafting is not for you, read on for more background.

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Bach: Du treuer Gott

~ Andrew Benson-Wilson ~ Leave a comment

J S Bach: Du treuer Gott
Leipzig Cantatas BWV 101 – 103 – 115
Collegium Vocale Gent, Philippe Herreweghe
Outhere music LPH027.62’26Nimm von uns, Herr, du treuer Gott BWV 101
Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit BWV 115
Ihr werdet weinen und heulen BWV 103

Following two earlier CDs (LPH006 and LPH012) that focussed on cantatas written during Bach’s first year in Leipzig, this recording looks at the second cycle of cantatas, composed in 1724/5. Nimm von uns, Herr, du treuer is based on the chorale melody better known as Vater unser im Himmelreich, the Lutheran version of the Lord’s Prayer. Apart from the first aria (with its delightfully jovial flute solo), this well-known melody is heard in all movements. The two recitatives are interesting, with both alternating the chorale melody with recitative passages, the first in a particularly dramatic mood, the second with some evocative harmonic sequences. The central bass aria also switches between chorale and aria. Bach uses a strong orchestration, with three trombones, three oboes, an oboe da caccia, and a cornett – an unusual use of an instrument that would have been seen as distinctly old-fashioned at the time. The final aria, a reflective duet for soprano and alto, combines flute and oboe da caccia.  Continue reading →