Throughout its Golden Age, England cultivated the masque, an elite entertainment featuring dialogue, song, and dance. As part of these spectacles, courtiers and at times even the queen herself, often graced the dance floor. But it was hired professionals who provided the musical heart of these productions. Lutenists in particular were especially adept at creating music for any occasion. The dances, variations on popular songs, and fantasias they composed are full of versatility and virtuosity. This recording features lute works by the foremost composers of the Elizabethan-Jacobean era, with music by Dowland, Holborne, Bacheler, Ferrabosco, and other contemporaries who participated in The Queenes Maskes. For many years Elisa La Marca has been much sought after by leading specialist ensembles (Il Giardino Armonico, Il Pomo d’Oro, Les Musiciens du Prince, Zefiro etc.), with which she appears in prestigious locations, the mostly recent being the Teatro alla Scala in Milan. Here she presents her first solo album, devoted to one of her favourite repertoires.
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