Lorenzino del Liuto (Lorenzino of the Lute) was a Roman lutenist of the late sixteenth century, the son of a Fleming who joined the professional migration south to Italy. No one would claim that his small dances presented here are on par with Dowland's, but they are interesting pieces that carry some of the experimental, connoisseur-oriented atmosphere of the madrigals of the same period. As lutenist Marco Pesci points out in his booklet notes, Lorenzino's style was forward-looking, with toccata-like elements invading even ...
Read More
Lorenzino del Liuto (Lorenzino of the Lute) was a Roman lutenist of the late sixteenth century, the son of a Fleming who joined the professional migration south to Italy. No one would claim that his small dances presented here are on par with Dowland's, but they are interesting pieces that carry some of the experimental, connoisseur-oriented atmosphere of the madrigals of the same period. As lutenist Marco Pesci points out in his booklet notes, Lorenzino's style was forward-looking, with toccata-like elements invading even what seem to be straight dance pieces as they develop. One can see why his name lasted for more than a century in the history books, at a time when few names lasted that long. Specialists and libraries will be more excited about this disc than average listeners; there is a rhythmically squarish feel to much of the music here, and the long "Passomezzo" (track 10) is less exciting than any number of other treatments of that vernacular Italian dance pattern. However, the several lute...
Read Less
