Garlic & Onions The Playfords

• Henry Playford (1657 - 1709): Twas o'er the Hills and far away (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 1 Playford: Twas o'er the Hills and far away (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 05:17
• Anonymous: I will give my love an apple:
• 2 Anonymous: I will give my love an apple 03:38
• Nutmegs and Ginger:
• 3 Anonymous: Nutmegs and Ginger 01:51
• Henry Playford: Cook's Humour (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 4 Playford: Cook's Humour (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 01:12
• Tim Liebert (b. 1966): Garlic and Onions:
• 5 Liebert: Garlic and Onions 02:25
• John Playford (1623 - 1686): The Glory of the Kitchen / Jamenko (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 6 Playford: The Glory of the Kitchen / Jamenko (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 01:16
• Henry Playford: Lumps of Pudding (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 7 Playford: Lumps of Pudding (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 04:41
• John Playford: The Merry Merry Milkmaids / The Milkmaid's Bob (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 8 Playford: The Merry Merry Milkmaids / The Milkmaid's Bob (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 02:34
• John Playford, William Byrd (ca. 1540 - 1623): Northern Lasse's Lamentation / Sellinger's Round (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 9 Playford, Byrd:Northern Lasse's Lamentation / Sellinger's Round (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 03:58
• Thomas Campion (1567 - 1620): Though you are young and I am old (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 10 Campion: Though you are young and I am old (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 02:02
• John Playford: Dissembling Love (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 11 Playford: Dissembling Love (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 03:40
• On the cold ground (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 12 Playford: On the cold ground (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 02:05
• Ginnie Pug or Strawberries and Cream (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 13 Playford: Ginnie Pug or Strawberries and Cream (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 01:26
• Tobias Hume (ca. 1569 - 1645): Tobacco (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 14 Hume: Tobacco (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 02:04
• John Playford: An Old man is a Bed full of bones (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 15 Playford: An Old man is a Bed full of bones (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 02:28
• A Cup of Old Stingo (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords):
• 16 Playford: A Cup of Old Stingo (Arr. for Baroque ensemble by The Playfords) 03:03
• Henry Playford: Mrs Savages Whim (Arr. for Renaissance ensemble by The Playfords):
• 17 Playford: Mrs Savages Whim (Arr. for Renaissance ensemble by The Playfords) 04:12
• Anonymous: Are you going to Whittingham Fair:
• 18 Anonymous: Are you going to Whittingham Fair 04:06
• Role the Rumple Sawny:
• 19 Anonymous: Role the Rumple Sawny 02:10
• Total Runtime 54:08

Info for Garlic & Onions

The musicians of The Playfords have compiled hearty, hearty dances of the English Renaissance, such as those by their namesake John Playford, Thomas Campion and Tobias Hume, for the new album, with "Garlic & Onions", "Strawberry & Cream", epicurean themes and the unadulterated life in the countryside.

The German ensemble "The Playfords" is known for presenting music of past centuries in a new way, excellently played of course. Their album "Luther dances" became a real bestseller. The new album is called "Garlic & Onions" and the music is about pleasure and culinary enjoyment in the broadest sense.

The focus is on music of the English Renaissance, such as the works of Thomas Campion or Tomas Hume, but also on English folk music, which not only describes the joy of good food (and drink), but also around the longing for a seemingly more unadulterated life in the English countryside in the 16th and 17th centuries. Inspired by John Playford's famous collection "The English Dancing Master", which also gave the ensemble its name, the album contains enjoyable traditional tunes such as "Nutmegs and Ginger", "Lumps of Pudding" and "The Cooks Humour", which thematise culinary pleasures with wit and ambiguity. The title song "Garlic and Onions" is by (German) singer-songwriter Tim Liebert (...). Songs like "The Merry Merry Milkmaids" conjure up images of merry rural escapades, while Tobias Hume's "Tobacco" is a tribute to the pleasures of the then-exotic. "I will give my love an apple" addresses the power of love through the hidden symbolism of the fruit, while "Glory of the Kitchen" praises the importance of good cooking. The Playfords' meticulous research and passion for unusual music is reflected in each piece.

Björn Werner, vocals
Annegret Fischer, recorders
Benjamin Dreßler, viola da gamba
Nora Thiele, percussion
Erik Warkenthin. baroque guitar, lute, chitarrone

The Playfords
developed a distinctive authentic, innovative and danceable Early Music Style over the last 20 years of their existence. They are one of the few ensembles improvising extempore on stage and thus embody truthfully authenticity of historically informed performance. Their sources of creativity are music, texts and life of the 16th and 17th century in Europe and beyond. History, tradition & evergreens are woven into holistic concept programmes and blossom in new arrangements.

Early music, Folk, Pop, Jazz, non-European Music, Poetry, Dance, Art, Visual Arts and Theater are metamorphosed into I n s p i r e d E a r l y M u s i c .

The five-headed ensemble is named after John and Henry Playford’s collection “The English Dancing Master” (1651). A Real Book of it’s time providing notated Hit-melodies on fitting dance steps. Harmonies and Bass were to be improvised by the performing musicians, their essential character determined by those own predilections and particular talents. This was a welcome challenge to any virtuosic musician’s creativity – then as well as now.

The Playfords have performed regularly at international festivals since 2005, including as part of the “Oude Muziek Utrecht” Fringe festival, at the Gewandhaus Leipzig, Schloss Tirol, MDR-Musiksommer, Bach-Biennale Weimar, Stockstädter Blockflötenfesttage, Philharmonie Berlin, Konzerthaus Berlin, to Belarus in cooperation with Goethe Institut and at the EXPO 2015 in Milan and many more. So far six CDs have been released at Coviello Classics, Raumklang and DHM.

With their yearly Playgroundfestival of early music folk in Weimar the format of “Early Music Jam Sessions” and different crossover programmes with Latin, Iraqi, English, Italian, German, Austrian and Dutch Musicians have been created (Latin Baroque, Shakespeare’s Musicke & Dounce, Trialogue of Religions, L’Arte da Vinci).

Booklet for Garlic & Onions