Review by mwagner1962 May 23, 2005 (4 of 4 found this review helpful)
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As a long time fan of Baroque music (and a person who is vigorously re-educating himself), I bought this disc as a friend recommended it. I was not disappointed, though I will agree with the previous reviewer that there is little of anything to make me think of anything other than some normal European Baroque.
BUT.....I love the singing on this recording (all local Bolivian singers, which is really cool) and the playing of Florilegium is simply top notch. It really sounds like these folks are having fun while making great music.
To me, sonically, the miking is a touch on the hot side, though not too bad. We get a nice sense of the location that the music was recorded in, and there is nice spacing between the players as well as a good sense of air. In the DVD-V that is included, we hear that the speakers that were promised for the playback for the editing turned out to be simply unacceptable, so the recording engineer had to do all the editing with headphones...so maybe this explains the somewhat close miking.
Speaking of the DVD-V...this makes the "package" a really super deal. Not only do we get to see all the work what transpired prior to the making of this recording, we also get some video shots of the many local Bolivian musical groups playing their hearts out...and this is truly heartwarming. Perhaps most touching is seeing the emotions pour out of the tenor, Henry Villca, as he appears to be overwhelmed with the excitement of the music and the experience. I can understand how he felt, as I was the same way in April of 1991 when I was a member of one of two choirs from Ohio State that performed and recorded Mahler's 8th Symphony with the Atlanta Symphony and Robert Shaw. Sometimes, the excitement and awe of the moment is simply too much to handle.
I look forward to more Florilegium recordings, and maybe some more efforts like this, though it might be nice to add a more "Bolivian" touch!!!!
Recommended!!!!
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