The Bach Aria Soloists’ Le Dolce Sirene gets a great review from Laurence Vittes in the March 2023 issue of Gramophone Magazine:

“The Kansas City-based Bach Aria Soloists make their recording debut on Reference Recordings with a lovely album of Monteverdi, Bach, Handel and Mendelssohn, complemented by Cecilia McDowall and concluding with their own improvisation on La folia. Recorded with the label’s trademark sweet and clear perfection, ‘Le dolce sirene’ achieves that audiophile miracle, sounding even better on speakers than on headphones.

…the music is rich in conventional beauty, from Sarah Tannehill Anderson, luscious in Monteverdi and resplendent in Handel’s ‘Rejoice greatly’, to Elizabeth Suh Lane and her continuo mates illuminating Bach’s G major Violin Sonata from 1734. By contrast McDowall’s Four Shakespeare Songs use intriguingly skewed, modern notions of romantic beauty and sudden sweeps of song perfectly timed, voiced and sung to explore different aspects of love. ‘First Rehearse’ on its own, Titania’s blessing of the lovers, is a magical tour de force.…”

—Laurence Vittes, Gramophone

Full review on Gramophone.co.uk and in the March 2023 Issue.