Lamento

With his sweet, expressive countertenor voice allied to powerful musical intelligence, Iestyn Davies joins forces with the superb viol consort Fretwork and organist Silas Wollston to explore music of the German Baroque from the generation before J.S. Bach. As well as Schein (two instrumental suites from his Banchetto Musicale form the longest works here), Scheidt and Schütz, all with very distinctive voices, we encounter Tunder, Geist, Sances and J.S. Bach’s first cousin once removed, Johann Christoph. This is music of deep religious belief whose gentle fervour Davies conveys wonderfully. The two tracks on which he is joined by fellow countertenor Hugh Cutting are heart-stoppingly beautiful.