In this fascinating new recording, Fretwork - "the finest viol consort on the planet" (The London Evening Standard) - illustrates the genuinely cosmopolitan atmosphere which prevailed at the English court of Tudor and Stuart monarchs. Although the unconverted Jews had been banished from the Kingdom since 1290, England's musical life between 1550 and 1650 was virtually monopolized by the crypto-Jewish dynasties of the Bassano and Lupo families of composers and performers. Adding a contemporary echo, the program includes the first recording of Birds on Fire by Britain's Orlando Gough (born 1953). One of UK's most important composers for ballet, dance and theater projects, here Gough found his inspiration in the work of klezmer musicians and in part based his piece on traditional tunes known as "Kandel's Hora" and "Odessa Bulgarish." Performing on Renaissance and modern instruments, the members of Fretwork are joined by cantor Jeremy Avis for a pair of Hebrew liturgical settings penned by Salvatore Rossi (d. 1630).