The new disc by Phantasm is a mixed bag of 16th century English viol music by Parsons, Ferrabosco, Tallis, and Byrd. The centerpiece is a beautiful performance of Byrd's 4-voice mass, one of the true masterpieces of the era. I became convinced that instrumental performances of Renaissance masses could be worthwhile after hearing the Calefax Reed Quintet's lovely readings of Ockeghem's "Fors Seulement" and Byrd's 5-voice mass. There is, of course, greater color variation with a reed group than with a viol consort, but Phantasm makes up for this with their exceptional ability to phrase—the words were clearly in their minds, informing the actions of the fingers.
Highest praise for this, then. Another wonderful disc from this marvelous group
