William Jackson: Songs, Canzonets and a Sonata
William Jackson of Exeter (1730–1803) – a painter and writer as well as a composer – has been, until now, something of a hidden treasure. As Timothy Roberts writes in his introduction to this first album of Jackson’s music, ‘his songs are rooted in English traditions, and if his harmonies rarely move beyond those of Corelli and Handel, Jackson’s emphasis on sensibility also brings hints of early Romanticism’. ‘His melodies were pure and natural’, as one contemporary observed, resulting in music that is both elegant and charming.
Emma Kirkby, soprano (Tracks 3, 5, 6, 13, 14, 16, 19)
Irene Mas Salom, soprano (Tracks 2, 3, 6, 13, 14, 16, 19), violin (Tracks 7, 9–11)
Charles Daniels, tenor (Tracks 1, 5, 7, 12, 15, 17)
Maria-Antònia Melià, flute (Track 4)
Bernat Cabot, violin (Tracks 7, 9–11)
Cristina Trenchs, viola (Tracks 9–11)
Sylvia Serrano, cello (Tracks 9–11, 12)
Timothy Roberts, harpsichord (Tracks 9–11)
Ars Musicae, Mallorca (Tracks 1–8, 12–19)
Listen To This Recording:
- Let me approach my sleeping love, Op. 4, No. 8
- Ianthe the lovely, the joy of her swain, Op. 1, No. 12
- Time has not thinn’d my flowing hair, Op. 9, No. 1
- Lone minstrel of the midnight hour, Op. 15, No. 7
- Ah! where does my Phillida stray? Op. 9, No. 5
- Ye shepherds give ear to my lay, Op. 4, No. 4
- For ever, Fortune, wilt thou prove, Op. 1, No. 3
- Twas when the seas were roaring, Op. 1, No. 9
- Sonata in A minor, Op. 10, No. 4: I Andante
- Sonata in A minor, Op. 10, No. 4: II Allegro
- Sonata in A minor, Op. 10, No. 4: III Minuetto
- In vain you tell your parting lover, Op. 1 No. 5
- Again returns the blushful May, Op. 16, No. 4
- O Venus! hear my ardent pray’r, Op. 9, No. 8
- Blest as th?immortal gods is he, Op. 1, No. 2
- My banks they are furnish’d with bees, Op. 4, No. 2
- The heavy hours are almost past, Op. 1, No. 1
- Night to lovers’ joys a friend, Op. 7, No. 6
- Sweet was the sun’s last parting ray, Op. 16, No. 6
FIRST RECORDINGS
Gramophone :
‘Published between about 1755 and 1770, most songs bring to mind the sort of tuneful strophic ballads JC Bach produced for Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. They frequently feature four-part strings played by the Majorcan instrumental ensemble Ars Musicae with sensitive limpidity, albeit with a few blemishes of imperfect tuning. Charles Daniels and Emma Kirkby perform with their customary intelligence regarding phrasing, words and ornaments […] they impart plenty of wisdom and charming ideas to this fascinating repertoire. Daniels’s melancholy ‘In vain you tell your parting lover’ is accompanied gracefully by Roberts and cellist Silvia Serrano, whereas two flutes from Ars Musicae double the violins in Kirkby’s playful ‘Again returns the blushful May’. When not playing second violin, Irene Mas Salom sings with a firm, sustained legato in Jackson’s elegant setting of John Gay’s ‘’Twas when the seas were roaring’ (verses famous from a setting attributed to Handel), and combines deftly with Kirkby in two canzonets. At the centre of the programme is a charming Sonata in A minor (Op 10 No 4, c1773) – essentially a miniature harpsichord concerto accompanied by string quartet, played adroitly by Roberts and the Majorcan strings.’
—David Vickers, Gramophone