Apart from his justifiably renowned signature piece, Sonnerie de Sainte Genevieve du Mont de Paris, Marin Marais’ Suite d’un goût étranger (Suite in Foreign Taste or Suite with Strange Preferences, depending on interpretation) from his Fourth Book of Pièces de Viole has received more recordings than any of his other works. This is understandable since this work represents the mature Marais now free of his duties as Court conductor and at the height of his most expressive and imaginative powers. Here viola da gambist Lorenz Duftschmid and colleagues Thomas Boysen and Johannes Hammerle devote the bulk of their program to the work, offering nine of the most famous selections from the 31-piece Suite (given complete only by Jean-Louis Charbonnier and colleagues for Pierre Verany as part of their 5-CD traversal of the entire Fourth Book).
Given the competition, these performances are quite good! In the opening Marche Tartare for instance, compared with Charbonnier’s leisurely stroll, Savall’s dirge (Naïve), and Coin’s jog (Decca), Duftschmid digs right in, sustains a momentum, and adopts accent choices more convincingly evocative of the correct step. Duftschmid’s slower and broader-than-usual treatment of the familiar Muzette is equally well considered without compromising the work’s lucidity and shape. In arguably one of the most difficult selections, Le Labyrinthe, Duftschmid fully explores the work’s wide tonal variety and numerous dissonant displays while probing Marais’ many clever, seemingly directionless passages. This is a rare, deeply profound, introspective performance rivalling Pandolfo’s (Glossa) with its similarly refreshing clarity and breadth.
Two other popular favorites, Les voix Humaines and Les Folies d’Espagne from Marais’ Second Book, conclude the program. The ensemble delivers equally accomplished performances here as well, though in the latter it lacks the thrilling visceral impact of Watillon’s (Alpha), due to the presence of a second viola da gamba and additional guitar and theorbe in that recording (type Q7567 in Search Reviews).
CPO’s well-detailed sound is quite good, slightly favoring Duftschmid. All in all, this is world-class Marais and certainly is worthy of consideration by Marais neophytes and aficionados alike. Recommended.
