CD: Hesperus: An Early American Quilt

Back when I was in school one of my English teachers was kind enough to introduce us to the verse of Ogden Nash, including a recording of his rant about the commercialization of Christmas, in which he made the following threat:

This year I’m going to disconnect everything electrical in the house and spend the Christmas season like Tiny Tim and Mr Pickwick.

I think a fair number of us sympathize with Mr. Nash and his longing for the simple delights of the past, even if we're not ready to dispense with central heating or the DVD player. But it's not a bad idea to take a bit of time in the next month or so to get in touch with your inner colonial lady or gentleman and contemplate how the ancestors must have spent a winter evening back in the day. Try substituting gossip for the evening news and reading aloud for the latest episode of Desperate Housewives, and let's not forget the games, music, and dancing. Does anybody have a fiddle?

Last winter I had the opportunity to sample such entertainments when a friend of mine took me to a local folk festival, where she was one of the scheduled storytellers. As we stood watching the English country dancing - very Jane Austen, even if we were in a gymnasium - she asked me if I'd dare to participate. I had just finished saying, "Maybe next time," when a partner presented himself - again, very Jane Austen - and the next thing I knew, I was learning how to glide across the floor like Catherine Morland or Lizzy Bennet. It was somehow serene and exhilarating at the same instant.

I feel a little bit the same way with An Early American Quilt, the latest release from the early music ensemble Hesperus. This is something of an anthology of music from early America, and Hesperus casts a pretty wide net: English, Irish, Scottish, and French dance tunes; centuries-old songs such as "Fortune, My Foe," "Greensleeves," and "Barbara Allen"; and one choral work from the American shape note or Sacred Harp tradition, "New Jerusalem."

Ten of the 20 tracks come from 2007 recordings with Hesperus director Tina Chancey, Grant Herreid, and Maggie Sansone, but in addition there are selections from studio and live performances from over two decades of the group's history. That's Hesperus founder Scott Reiss - variously playing Irish whistle, recorder, and hammered dulcimer - on nine of the tracks, including five from a live concert. The great fiddler Bonnie Rideout is among the guest instrumentalists.

The music itself is utterly charming, and much of it sets your toes tapping. If you want to hear what people were dancing and flirting to back in the 18th century, and even before that, here's your chance. Among the highlights are selections from John Playford's The English Dancing Master, including "Stingo," which is threatening to become my favorite track.

That said, the mood changes several times over the course of the album. The familiar ballad "Barbara Allen" is mournful to begin with, but Melissa Weaver Dunning's a capella reading here is as dark as any I've heard. "New Jerusalem," though, gets a hearty, joyous treatment, with the singers starting off with fa, so, la before launching into the lyrics, as fits the Sacred Harp tradition.

It's a testament to the album that the material, to say nothing of the playing, will appeal to fans of various genres: folk, bluegrass, Celtic, and early music in general. And would it surprise you to hear that if you've paid attention to the soundtracks of recent films such as Cold Mountain, Sleepy Hollow, and Songcatcher, you'll already be familiar with one or more musical traditions represented on An Early American Quilt?

My interest in ballads, traditional Irish and English tunes, and early music ensembles has been building for decades, but somehow I'd overlooked a tune called "Cuckolds All in a Row," which is featured in a medley on this album. This being 2007 and all, I just had to perform a Google search on that title -- and turned up corresponding dance steps. History class was never like this...