Armenian Spirit

"This is a beguiling, mesmeric sequence of instrumental music from Armenia, in which Hesperion XXI are joined by a group of that country's finest musicians...[The duduk's] beautiful, musky sound seductively reflects the predominantly nostalgic, lamenting, soulful mood of the pieces heard here." (Sunday Times)

"Haunting and tragic, this CD is a double-lament - for Jordi Savall's late wife, the singer Montserrat Figueras, who loved Armenian music, and for Armenia, with its long history of foreign subjugation and massacre...It is hypnotic and exquisitely melancholic." (The Times)

This album is a tribute to Armenia and to the Armenian musicians who played alongside Jordi Savall and his wife Montserrat Figueras over the years. The repertoire consists alternately of very lively pieces and more contemplative ones, all of them beautifully played on traditional instruments, including the 'duduk', a flute with a deeply moving sound originating from a time before times.

Jordi Savall unveils this music with his faultless musical flair and an endless curiosity, as testified in the lavishly documented and illustrated booklet.