90 – When Cressyde wente from troye
Anonymous
Neutral Spinet Recording
Organ - Grand Jeux
This reworking on the organ was inspired by the Grand Jeux registration scheme commonly used by French Baroque composers, such as Couperin and de Grigny. There is an immense sense of power in this registration scheme thanks to the richness of the reed stops. This rich registration helps to emphasise the many unexpected harmonic twists and turns heard throughout this piece. The use of French inspired ornamentation, commonly found in the works of Couperin, helps to make this rendition sound as though it is an authentic piece of French Baroque organ music.
Harpsichord - introspective
This recording on the harpsichord is also one of my favourite recordings of this entire project. It is slow and introspective, and makes the most out of what the harpsichord can offer when interpreting this kind of music. The use of generous ornamentation helps to support the melodic line through the relatively quick decay time in this acoustic. This, coupled with the elongations of suspensions and emphasis on dissonances heightens the introspective aspects of this performance. This is particularly so in the first half of the piece where there are many false relations.