Delphian artist Gordon Ferries
launches his new recording:
Les Plaisirs les plus Charmants
DCD34011

Join us for a lively programme of guitar music from the French baroque! Advance copies of this recording will be on sale for £12. Buy two copies and receive a free copy of Love and Reconquest (DCD34003)!

Les Plaisirs les plus Charmants is available on our website in June and in stores in August.

LES PLAISIRS LES PLUS CHARMANTS
Gordon Ferries performs French Baroque guitar repertoire.

Friday 30 May 2003
Edinburgh Society of Musicians' Rooms
3 Belford Road, Edinburgh, EH4
Admission Free
RSVP to launchevent@delphianrecords.co.uk

Delphian Records is proud to announce the Dunedin Consort’s latest recording of the music of Byrd and Tallis, In Chains of Gold (DCD34008).

This recording follows a successful tour of Canadian performances of Byrd’s Masses and features William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices accompanied by motets and organ hymns by Byrd and his teacher, Thomas Tallis. Uniquely, Dunedin Consort presents these works with one voice per part, creating an exceedingly clear vocal texture.

In Chains of Gold is also Ben Parry’s last recorded collaboration with the group as a full-time music director, with a role as session producer.

‘I am happier now on the other side of the microphone,’ says Parry. ‘This repertoire is very close to my heart, and hearing the Byrd Mass with one voice per part is the best thing!’

* Hear a sample track (RealPlayer, 1.27MB)

In Chains of Gold
Dunedin Consort
DCD34008

*buy your copy

Available from your favourite retailers in June.

The Saturday 17 May edition of The Scotsman contained a cogently written exposition by Bill Jamieson of the crisis facing classical music. For months, we have read about economic stagnation. In the realm of the performing arts, a sputtering economy has taken a heavy toll on the endowments and operating expenses of major institutions worldwide. Jamieson argues that shrinking resources, coupled with a new generation of youngsters who are growing up in a climate of competing entertainments and scant arts education, can only mean a death knell for classical music. He cites the Financial Times critic Andrew Clark as he notes that the crisis is actually one of values: "those of discipline, concentration, self-improvement, individualism, and spiritual/philosophical contemplation" - all of which classical music bolsters - are increasingly viewed as elite concerns by a "microwave culture". "[L]eading orchestras," he writes, "are in meltdown."

The Florida Philharmonic has just disbanded with a highly-publicised bankruptcy, even as the city of Miami builds a brand-new, multi-million-dollar arts centre. "Pardon me for not feeling more sympathy for the plight of these musicians, but many of them aren't willing to address what audiences consider entertainment in 2003," writes Jeff Stratton of the alternative weekly New Times: "And barring educators and NPR fanatics, the public doesn't care about classical music enough to consider the Phil's loss a tragedy." Sound callous and one-sided? Perhaps, coming from a writer in the largest American metropolitan region without a single classical radio station.

I like to think that the beauty of classical music is that it is equal parts education and entertainment. Now, more than ever, as we come to appreciate the bounties of a heterogenous, multicultural society, it is important to stay invested in diverse artistic offerings - it need not be a zero-sum game. We're proud to be one of many independent labels who are committed to producing unique and interesting projects that continue to expand the public's musical horizons. Classical music, moreover, has evolved over hundreds of years through war, famine, and misfortune of every stripe. If we can make it a point individually to share our enthusiasm for music with others whenever we can, we just might get through this rough patch.