The Chilean guitarist and early music specialist Ernesto Quezada has done a first-rate job in the presentation and gathering together in one volume nine lute gems of the Elizabethan era. The concise «Prologue« contains some interesting and informative morsels of knowledge concerning music from that period plus some brief snippets of enlightenment regarding lute technique. All the music was transcribed from original lute tablature from manuscripts contained in collections from such as the British Library, Cambridge University Library, Glasgow University Library, etc.
The book has four anonymous works (Robin is to the Oreenwood Gone; John Come Kiss Me Now; Sellenger's Round; Greensleeves) and five other pieces by Edward Collard (Go From My Window), John Johnson (Carman's Whistle), John Dowland (Fortune My Foe), William Byrd (The Woods So Wad) and Daniel Bacheler (Monsieur's Almaine).
All the pieces are written with «divisions« or what we now tend to call «variations« (apparently there are no pieces from this period of English lute music with the word variation in the title) and hence some of the pieces make for a substantial offering with quite extensive lengths, notably Monsieur's ALmaine and Greensleeves both clocking in at eight pages each with John Come Kiss Me Now and The Woods So Wad two pages behind, at six.
To facilitate performance, it is recommended that the third string be tuned down to F sharp and a capo placed on the second or third fret to not only come closer to the original pitch of the lute but also to facilitate left hand stretches.
A nice touch at the end of this edition is the inclusion of the lyrics to each of the songs and a short history concerning each piece.
The technical requirements vary from around Grade 6 through to 8 and the package is very neatly presented, well fingered and comes with an attractive front cover featuring good Queen Bess playing the lute.
Steve Marsh (Classical Guitar Magazine)
