Daniel And The Lions (Ludus Danielis)

One basic feature, which determines the difference between Fonè and other record companies, is the recording of performances in their natural spaces, which is in the places where they were originally presented. This leads to a constant search for suitable locations, and the choice of churches, theaters, country mansions, drawing rooms and so on. The recordings are carried out with the utmost simplicity, the only way not to do violence to the music: all the equipment is high fidelity; use is made of valve-type paired microphones manufactured in the years 1947 and 1949 (U47, U48 and M49) with an extremely natural and transparent timbre and a bi-microphonic field effect; these microphones have a very important history: they were used to record the Beatles at the Abbey Road Studio and by the RCA for the “Living Stereo” recordings.

The Ludus Danielis is part of the Christmas cycle of liturgical dramas. It belongs, that is, to the group of texts which originated as figures to speech, or annotations, of the Christmas religious office, wherein they evolved with specific features of their own, if not as independent spectacles. (Luigi Bellingardi)

Frederick Renz is a unique figure in the early music movement. Equally adept in all forms of music and music drama from the 11th through the 18th centuries, he has reaped international acclaim for his work as conductor, producer, director, and performer while leading EARLY MUSIC NEW YORK to preeminence in the field.

New York’s Ensemble for Early Music
Frederick Renz, Director