??highly capable playing, with expert tuning [and] smooth lines.? Gramophone ?...the players combine wit, taste and an earthy Bohemian wink to win the heart.' BBC Music ?An impressive recording debut...everyone blends well, and the tone colors are striking.? Fanfare ?Ensemble Marsyas is more direct and exciting - still refined and beautifully transparent of sound, but with greater impulse and energy.? MusicWeb International ? Ensemble Marsyas? recording of Johann Fasch?s finest chamber music demonstrates why the man and his music were so appreciated in his own lifetime. ? Founding member Peter Whelan and ?the queen of the recorder? (BBC Radio 3) Pamela Thorby are the soloists challenged with meeting the virtuoso demands of this engaging music. ? The four-movement Quartet in B-flat Major for recorder, oboe, violin and continuo is among one of Fasch?s most popular works; full of catchy tunes and contrapuntal ingenuity in equal measure, virtuosity is demanded from all concerned. ? The Concerto in F Major for recorder and strings was only recently attributed to Fasch. It is full of characteristic Fasch-isms and of the same dramatic quasi-recitative style as his Bassoon Concerto. ? Ensemble Marsyas? debut ?Zelenka: Sonatas?, featuring some of the most spectacularly challenging music ever written for wind instruments, was named ?Chamber Choice? by BBC Music Magazine. ? Ensemble Marsyas was awarded both first prize and the audience prize at the 2007 Brugge International Competition. Each member has since established themselves at the forefront of their profession and individually they have been awarded accolades by both critics and the recording industry alike. ? The Edinburgh based chamber group comprises the best of a new generation of musicians specialising in early music from across Europe. ? Ensemble Marsyas is Peter Whelan - bassoon, Josep Dom?nech Lafont - oboe, Molly Marsh - oboe, Thomas Dunford - theorbo, Philippe Grisvard - harpsichord/organ, Christine Sticher - violone.
Performance / Sound
'Full of playful contrapuntal ideas and energetic passagework...this music positively flourishes in the hands of the Ensemble Marsyas.'
BBC Music Magazine
'...an overwhelmingly joyful listening experience... this is a prize-winning ensemble and the release may well bring them yet more glories.' Early Music Review
'... the real star is Peter Whelan's bassoon, burbling through its vast range with dancing precision, underpinning the quartets and shining in a C major concerto.' The Guardian
'Dip anywhere into this CD and you can expect to be delighted by the distinctive colours as well as the often gutsy brio of the playing...an experience not to be missed.' The Irish Times