Dear Konstantin, Well done on your YouTube performance. There are many positive things you do, but you invite criticism, so here are a few thoughts, which I hope you will find helpful.
Firstly your lute playing. Make sure you play every note cleanly. For example, I cannot hear e6 at the end of the second bar, although I can see that your third finger is in the correct place for it. I notice that there are places where you don't play exactly what is written. For example, you play |\ |\ |\ | |\ | ____a____________ _______e__c__e___ _d_______________ _________________ _________________ _c_______________ instead of |\ |\ |\ | |\ | _________________ ____f__e__c__e___ _d_______________ _________________ _________________ _c_______________ and ____ _e__ _a__ ____ _c__ ____ instead of ____ _e__ _f__ _e__ _c__ ____ I think it is better to stick with what Dowland wrote. You may find it easier to use a barré for |\ |\ |\ | |\ | _____________________ ____4f__3e__1c__3e___ _2d__________________ _____________________ _____________________ _1c__________________ Speed is a subjective matter, but I feel the song is a little too fast, and there is a feeling of rushing. The song is about love, so take your time. There are some things which need to be corrected by your singer friend. He has a nice voice well suited to lute songs, but he is singing in a foreign language, so makes a few mistakes. "Come again" needs to be more of a welcome, and one which includes the audience. His eyes need to be looking up, not glued to the music. The "t" of "delight" is lost, which is actually a very common thing with native English singers, but the "t" needs to be heard. The words "to share" should be "to hear". This is all very sensual stuff, with Dowland going through the senses, a courtship consisting of five increasingly erotic verbs: to see, to hear, to touch, to kiss, to die (which is nothing to do with death). Dowland is very careful to write crotchet rests, and, without hamming it up, it is appropriate to introduce some heavy breathing - a little audible gasp on each crotchet rest. It is very important to give the word "die" its full length (your friend clips it short each time). Many singers overlook the crotchet rest after "die", and think it is more musical to have a long, uninterrupted line, but this is not what Dowland wrote. The rests are very important, and all must be observed. The words "with they again" should be "with thee again". It is important to pronounce "th" correctly: "sympathy", not "sympa-tee", and "through", not "true". The letter "i" is not right in "sit", which your friend pronounces as "seat". The word "deadly" should sound "deddly", not "diddly". Dowland's "Come again" is one of the most erotic songs of all time. The words "come" and "die" have two meanings. If your singer friend can give more thought to the meaning of the words, sing from memory, look up, and gently seduce his audience, he will win many admirers. Best wishes, Stewart McCoy. -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Êîíñòàíòèí Ùåíèêîâ Sent: 06 June 2011 23:59 To: lute List Subject: [LUTE] My playing Hi, all Me and my friend recorded two songs by Jonn Dowland. I will be glad to know your opinions, tips. I wait criticism)) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riT4fMWnxaQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlnaVfE2-7Y Konstantin Shchenikov -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
