The first album of the ensemble founded by the Spanish (Catalan) viola da gamba player Jordi Savall and his wife Montserrat Figueras. Hespèrion is ancient Greek for the peoples of the Italian and Iberian peninsulas. In the twentieth century the ensemble was called XX, and in the twenty-first… ah, I forgot.
I found Jordi Savall because of his later best-seller Tous les matins du monde, film music for the most authentic music film I’ve ever seen. In 1991 the album was a huge success. I have seen Jordi Savall and his ensemble once in the Concertgebouw. Even though I think the venue was too big for the ensemble, hearing the songs from the album I liked so much was quite the experience.