Duets for Baroque Lute & Mandolino is perhaps the most satisfying release yet from the Schneiderman-Yamaya Duo. The innovative programming, in the form of Hideki Yamaya’s insightful transcriptions for mandolino, would make one think these works were written for this instrument, rather than adapted variously from the violin, flute and recorder repertoire. (Yamaya has quite a penchant for pulling off this demanding task, as can be seen in his mandolin transcriptions of the Telemann Fantasias for solo flute.)  His quest to increase visibility for the mandolino is truly bearing fruit, as evinced by this recording.

On this release, the bright and airy Allegro opening from Ernst Gottlieb Baron’s Duetto in G Major  is defined by exuberant scalar passages, and the whole movement is reminiscent in spirit of the Presto from Bach’s Italian Concerto. Deftly articulated, rapid-fire hammer-on/pull-off triplet patterns from the mandolino still sing even at a brisk cantabile, and it features an incredibly even, quietly brilliant lute accompaniment from John Schneiderman.

Paul Charles Durant is quite a change-up, showcasing a sensibility that in some respects differs from the composers making up the rest of the album. Mysterious passages, wistful harmonic development, crisp tempos and insightful ornamentation create a framework suitable for real excitement in its more virtuosic moments. 

There are heady, affecting passages in the Amoroso from the Hagen duet—the lute plays a sentimental Alberti-style bass accompaniment while the mandolino sings a breathlessly beautiful aria above it. There are some movements for solo lute; specifically in the Blohm, the solo lute menuet is truly virtuosic, often sounding like multiple instruments.

For the Weiss Ciacona, Yamaya himself wrote the missing part for the soprano instrument, and his realization feels authentic. It steps aside occasionally to make way for the lute, as Weiss himself would surely have done and clearly intended. Those who love and listen to Weiss should find this fascinating.  

Bookending the release are two of a trio of featured works by Baron, a composer who, if these are representative of his output, we don’t hear enough about. There are some fascinatingly modern-sounding themes and voice leadings, including extensive unisons between instruments in the opening of the second D-minor Concerto, and engaging, hypnotic echo passages in the Allegro.

These two masters of strumenti pizzicati have here created a delightful recording that bears listening again and again and again; the whole thing feels fresh and new. Furthermore it is one that helps shed light on important, lesser-known works by composers who, for the sheer brilliance of their output, demand more recognition.