John Holloway Ensemble: Henry Purcell: Fantazias
ECM New Series

Much as they did with their earlier presentation of Renaissance composer John Dowland's Lachrimae Pavans, violinist John Holloway and his ensemble partners Monika Baer (viola), Renate Steinmann (viola), and Martin Zeller (violoncello) demonstrate an assured command of Baroque repertoire in their essaying of Henry Purcell's fantazias on their latest ECM release. The dozen pieces were composed in 1680 at a time when the form was considered old-fashioned and had been superseded by the sonata. That said, there's nothing stale about the renditions when Holloway and company breathe invigorating new life into the seventeenth-century material. So fresh are their treatments, it's hard to believe the pieces were written more than 340 years ago when Purcell (1659-95) was barely out of his teens.

Could anyone be better qualified than Holloway, born in 1948, to take on the project? Consider his accomplishments: a prodigy who played his first public concert at the age of eight, he went on to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, co-found the Silvestri String Quartet, become a pioneer of the Early Music movement, found the baroque ensemble L'Ecole d'Orphée, become Musical Director of the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, and earn international recognition as a teacher and lecturer. In addition to leading the John Holloway Ensemble, he's issued numerous recordings over the years. The performances he and his partners deliver on Fantazias show that his enthusiasm for music-making has clearly not abated.

It certainly doesn't hurt that the English composer gifted them with three- and four-part compositions of such intricate design and polyphonic richness. The counterpoint that's woven throughout is executed with elegance and precision by the ensemble, its nuanced realizations never suffering from an overly studious approach regardless of the technical challenges involved. The twelve settings allow for a broad range of moods and emotions, and the maturity of expression exemplified by the material is disarming when Purcell's age at the time of their creation is taken into account.

The opening “Fantazia X” instantly endears with a melancholy introduction and remains no less captivating when the tempo increases for the first contrapuntal display of many. Particularly affecting are the fifth for its tenderness and dignity and the seventh and third for their mournful character. The ensemble's strikingly beautiful handling of counterpoint is on display throughout (see the sixth, eighth, and eleventh as representative examples), as is the stirring quality of the baroque textures the musicians' strings produce (the second). As the ensemble's instruments gracefully interlace, the listener swoons to Purcell's music and the centuries fall away.

John Holloway's contention that even J. S. Bach “would have been immensely proud to have composed this music” is borne out by the recorded result. Adding to the recording's appeal, each piece is concise, most lasting two to three minutes at a time and only three nudging past the four-minute mark. That makes for a recording that's rewarding musically but also pleasingly flab-free.

November 2023