Rock purists derided Costello when he first flirted with classical forms 11 years ago, but his Brodsky Quartet collaboration The Juliet Letters still sounds like a bold career swerve. It could even be considered a punk statement in its bare-faced arrogance (stop sniggering at the back). Countless eclectic excursions later, Costello returned to Shakespeare in 2000 when an Italian dance troupe commissioned him to score a ballet based on A Midsummer Night's Dream. An hour-long condensation of that score recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, Il Sogno may invite more sneers for its vaulting pretensions. But it still makes for very easy light-orchestral listening, rich in airy melody and playful pastiche. It's not even classical in the old-school sense. There are echoes of Debussy but also of Gershwin and golden-age Hollywood soundtracks, plus recurring swing-jazz flourishes that recall Costello's last album, North. Hardly a major work, but another pleasantly competent string to his bow. Literally.
Rock purists derided Costello when he first flirted with classical forms 11 years ago, but his Brodsky Quartet collaboration The Juliet Letters still sounds like a bold career swerve. It could even be considered a punk statement in its bare-faced arrogance (stop sniggering at the back). Countless eclectic excursions later, Costello returned to Shakespeare in 2000 when an Italian dance troupe commissioned him to score a ballet based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream. An hour-long condensation of that score recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, Il Sogno may invite more sneers for its vaulting pretensions. But it still makes for very easy light-orchestral listening, rich in airy melody and playful pastiche. It’s not even classical in the old-school sense. There are echoes of Debussy but also of Gershwin and golden-age Hollywood soundtracks, plus recurring swing-jazz flourishes that recall Costello’s last album, North. Hardly a major work, but another pleasantly competent string to his bow. Literally.