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"Exquisite, magical, delicate, intriguing are just a few of the words to describe the stunning performances on the album “Lullabies With Mandolins”. Simon Mayor and Hilary James have released this their 20th collaborative album which showcases their wonderful dexterity and creativity using the mandolin, mandobass, guitar, double bass and various other instruments as well as their voices. The album is a mix of instrumental arrangements of classics such as the Andante from Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Mandolins and Schubert’s Cradle Song interspersed with wonderfully innovative arrangements of traditional children’s songs and lullabies including “Dance to your Daddy” and “Hush–a-bye Baby”.
Hilary supplies most of the vocals with Simon performing on violin, whistle and glockenspiel as well as the mandolins. I must confess I prefer the instrumental tracks although each of the songs is given a beautiful and original accompaniment and Hilary’s voice is perfect for children’s songs. The album is marketed at parents/grandparents of very young children and it would be very soothing and gentle background music playing as children go to sleep.
Both Simon and Hilary have always maintained a keen interest in music for children and have been involved in education and broadcasting for quite a few years. Of their 20 albums five have been recorded in their Musical Mystery Tour children’s series. This is children’s music of the very highest quality and so far superior to most of the music aimed at this niche market.
The fine musicianship demonstrated on this album is inspirational and the two of them admirably encompass many styles and genres of playing. The instrumental pieces can also be found on other recordings of Simon Mayor and this album has definitely whetted my appetite to listen to more. “Lullabies With Mandolins” is released on the Acoustic Record label."
Janet Roe
Hilary James & Simon Mayor
c/o Acoustics Records
PO Box 350, Reading RG6 7DQ, England
+44 (0)118 926 8615
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