The High Road to Kilkenny

Tireless travelers, crisscrossing styles and eras, Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien offer to follow them to Ireland.

The diversity of projects carried out by Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien could raise fears of a diluting of styles. But François Lazarevitch seems, on the contrary, to have an unrivaled instinct for understanding them and revealing what no one before him had seen. For anyone interested in the links between ancient music and living tradition, Irish music constitutes an ideal terrain. Object of a perennial practice today, these directories are in fact transmitted by numerous old anthologies, published from the 18th century. Far from being yet another disc attempting to create a dialogue between baroque and traditional repertoires, this recording presents great stylistic unity: it is, neither more nor less, a true disc of Irish music, played on ancient instruments. Dances, laments, ballads and Gaelic songs are presented in arrangements of great diversity, covering a very wide range of styles, from soothing lullabies to the most unbridled jigs. But the most remarkable thing, undoubtedly, is the finesse of the musicians’ playing. The ornaments, the sounds of the flute, of rare delicacy; and the rhythmic alchemy that takes place in the dances, of formidable efficiency, which draws us irrepressibly. This attention to detail is perhaps what unifies the disruptive journey of the Musicians of Saint-Julien, and makes it appear as an immense work of revitalizing the interpretation of ancient music.

Tomorrow all Irish celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. Those looking for festive sounds can find themselves with the Musicians of Saint-Julien. This French ensemble has a dual profile: as comfortable in early music as in traditional music. Two years ago these Musicians recorded a sublime CD of Bach’s Flute Sonatas. Now they are diving into the Baroque Folk music genre. In The High Road to Kilkenny we of course hear works by Turlough O’Carolan, the famous blind harpist of the 1700s. But also John Peacock had an ear for dazzling tunes, as we hear in Cuckold Come Out the Amery . In Sir Arthur Shæn the violinist David Greenberg plays with enthusiasm, but it is the flutist François Lazarevitch who impresses. His musicality shows us all the Irish sadness in The Banks of Barrow. Between the jigs and the reels, tenor Robert Getchell sings with delicious simplicity. (translation from Dutch)