Ars longa : old and new music for theorbo

"Recording of the month: Recent decades have seen something of a renaissance of the theorbo as a solo instrument, rather than just as a member of a continuo section. Perhaps, too, we are beginning to see the rise of a wave of new compositions for the instrument ... On this excellent CD, Elizabeth Kenny, one of the finest contemporary exponents of the theorbo (and, incidentally, of the lute), juxtaposes - perhaps one might say 'integrates'- pieces written for the instrument during its original 'golden age' as a solo instrument - i.e. the 'long' Seventeenth Century) - with pieces by British composers of our own time. The result is superb, engaging heart and mind alike and helped by a gorgeous recorded sound ... Elizabeth Kenny's playing throughout is all that one could ask for; it is hard to imagine a better case being made for either the value of the theorbo's traditional repertoire or its modern possibilities".

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"Increasingly, early music soloists and ensembles are embracing the challenge of commissioning new music for old instruments. There are three examples on Elizabeth Kenny's Ars longa: 'Old and new music for theorbo' ... by James MacMillan, from a 2011 work, and two new ones by Benjamin Oliver and Nico Muhly - all stylish uses of the pungently plucked sounds of this large-size lute. The theorbo is these days most often glimpsed poking up from the continuo groups in orchestras for baroque opera, but Kenny reassures us that "it is also just another big guitar". She frames the premieres with toccatas that sound like improvisations, hypnotic chaconnes that weave around repeated bass lines, and Robert de Visée's lovely tribute to his fellow Frenchman, 'Les Sylvains de Mr Couperin'".

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"At first glance, it is hard to imagine anything cheerful coming from a theorbo ... Yet this awkward giraffe of the lute family is capable of the most exquisite utterances ... Kenny lacks neither extensive playing experience in chamber, orchestral or operatic contexts nor a brilliant musical imagination. She brings both to bear on these performances of 'old and new music' ... She beautifully combines an expansive orchestral conception with an almost painful improvisatory intimacy. It's just lovely".