Gramophone Magazine
February 2023
Recording of the Month

Romain Bockler (baritone), Bor Zuljan (lute), Dulces Exuviae

Verdelot: O dolce nocte
Tromboncino: Tu dormi
Guerrero, Francisco: Si la noche haze escura
Paladin: Fantaisie I
anon.: Estas noches a tan largas
Pisador: Si la noche haze escura
anon.: La nocte quando
Palestrina: Che non fia che giamai dal cor si sgombri
Lassus: Toutes les Nuitz
Janequin: Toutes les nuictz
Thomas Crecquillon, Anonymous: Toutes les nuycts
Crecquillon: Toutes les nuyctz
Paladin: Fantaisie II
Crecquillon: Si pour amans la lune est importune
Vasquez, J: Salga la luna
Palestrina: Deh, hor foss'io col vago della luna
anon.: Aý Luna
Paladin: Fantasia IV
Josquin: Et trop penser, NJE 27.9
Lassus: La nuit froide et sombre
anon.: Da poi nocte vien la luce
Paladin: Fantasia III
Manchicourt: Voiez le jour
anon.: Al alba venid
Lennon & McCartney: Blackbird

In nocte consilium - the night brings counsel. Poets have always found the night to be a time of appeasement; for astronomers it is a long-awaited moment to observe the stars and planets. Mystics, however, have spent entire nights searching for the enigmatic signs of a divine presence. This programme forms a journey from dusk to dawn and guides us through various nights as described by several composers of the 16th century: we travel from hope to absence, from the sweetness of love’s dream to the chills of eternal night; the clear light of the moon nonetheless guides lovers to their reunion and our journey ends in the light of the first rays of the sun. Janequin, Lassus, Palestrina, Guerrero and their Franco-Flemish, Italian and Spanish colleagues lead us as we explore these nights, sometimes dark and terrifying, sometimes radiant with starlight, tranquil, and filled with love.