Hypnos is a figure in Greek mythology, not a god exactly, but a figure representing sleep who in the Iliad is a bit of a trickster. On this recording by Simon-Pierre Bestion and his vocal group La Tempête, though, it is not quite sleep that is addressed, for the most part, but death, admittedly sleep's first cousin. Some of the Renaissance selections are drawn from Requiem masses. Bestion also programs contemporary pieces by Giacinto Scelsi, Olivier Greif, and John Tavener, as well as selections from the so-called ...
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Hypnos is a figure in Greek mythology, not a god exactly, but a figure representing sleep who in the Iliad is a bit of a trickster. On this recording by Simon-Pierre Bestion and his vocal group La Tempête, though, it is not quite sleep that is addressed, for the most part, but death, admittedly sleep's first cousin. Some of the Renaissance selections are drawn from Requiem masses. Bestion also programs contemporary pieces by Giacinto Scelsi, Olivier Greif, and John Tavener, as well as selections from the so-called Ambrosian and Old Roman chant traditions of the early medieval era. These are sung over a pedal point. In some of the works, the voices are doubled by a cornett or bass clarinet, and the vocal lines of the Renaissance masses and motets are heavily ornamented with figures devised by Bestion himself. Clearly, no effort is being made here toward authentic performance; the musical texts serve as a stimulus toward further creative activity, and the effect of Bestion's modifications is to...
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