Categories
Recording

Haydn: ‘Sun’ quartets Op. 20 Nos. 1-3

Chiaroscuro Quartet
74:34
BIS-2158 SACD

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f the six string quartets completed by Haydn in 1772 and subsequently published as his opus 20 were not quite as radical a development as is sometimes suggested, they do none the less a mark a notable moment in the history of the genre. The name, incidentally, is taken from an early publication featuring an ornate title page headed by a motif of the sun god Apollo.

Among many striking features of the group is the sense of experimentation, not experimentation in the sense of groping one’s way forward trying to work things out, but in a bolder way that for perhaps the first time shows Haydn revelling in the control of the difficult genre he had already done so much to develop. Thus we find him playing with form, perhaps most strikingly in the Adagio of the C-major Quartet (no.2), which is nothing less than a full blown accompanied recitative and seria aria in which the vocal part is taken by the first violin. Or what of the Affettuoso of the first of group, in E flat? Here is one of those sublime cantabile movements that Haydn made so much his own, much of it in stepwise movement redolent of hymn or chant. Yet no hymn or chant ever employed modulation to such magical effect! Or we might turn to the opening Moderato of No. 1, with its first notes suggestive of ‘Where e’re you walk’, but more importantly one of many passages in these quartets where the composer contrasts high against low sonorities, sombreness against brilliance. Many more examples – contrapuntal mastery, for instance – could easily be cited in these quartets in which Haydn constantly surprises, challenges and delights the listener in, to quote the words of the great Haydn scholar H C Robbins Landon, ‘a barely suppressed state of excitement’.

Much the same might be said of these performances by the Chiaroscuro Quartet. I suspect there are no wound strings employed by members of the ensemble, which is not afraid of the nutty rasp of bow on pure gut, something that needs the outstanding technique at the command of these players. Special praise must go to first violinist Alina Ibragimova not only for her negotiation of the at-times high-flying part, but the expressive beauty of her playing in such passages as the second half of the Poco adagio of the G-minor Quartet (No. 3), here matched fully by cellist Claire Thirion. Throughout the Chiaroscuros are equally unafraid of tempo fluctuation, unmarked ritardandi and some daring extremes of dynamic contrast. These may bother some, although to my mind such licence is rarely taken other than for expressive purpose, rather than drawing self-serving attention to the performers. In sum, for me these performances complement the marvellous invention of Haydn in their ability to make the listener hear these quartets in a fresh light. I very much hope the Chiaroscuro Quartet and BIS will bring us the remaining three quartets before too long.

Brian Robins

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Recording

Frescobaldi: Toccate, Canzone e Partite dal Primo e Secondo Libro

Yu Yashima harpsichord
TT
Baryton 201401

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his is a debut CD from the Japanese-born harpsichordist who trained in Milan. She has recorded a mixed Frescobaldi programme taken from across the two books of Toccatas. It includes six toccatas in which she shows both stylistic awareness and technical fluency. The playing in these can be a bit formulaic, with somewhat exaggerated contrasts between sections and quite a lot of sudden accelerandos, but the rhetorical divisions are clear. The canzonas and gagliardas get lively performances, as does the centre-piece of the programme, the Cento Partite sopra Passacagli. There are two sets of variations which are played more reflectively and perhaps too slowly in the case of the Romanesca set. It is good to have the less-commonly recorded Capriccio sopra La Battaglia which is given a suitably bellicose performance. Yashima plays on a copy by Andrea Restelli of a harpsichord by Gregori of 1726 which is closely and richly recorded. There are informative liner notes by Marco Gaggini. This is a promising debut from a player from whom we can expect more in the future.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Bach – Isoir / Transcriptions

Michel Bouvard, François Espinasse organs
65:20
lo dolce vita LDV26

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he French organist André Isoir, who died recently, was noted for his J.S. Bach recordings. Two of his former students, themselves organists of renown, have recorded this disc of his solo transcriptions made from a variety of well-known Bach works including cantata and Mass movements, orchestral suites and concertos. That there seems little or no difference between the two performers here is a tribute to their acknowledged debt to their teacher. Both play with rhythmic vitality and very sympathetic registrations on an organ by Georg Westenfelder in Fère-en-Tardenois, inaugurated by Isoir in 1991. It is ideally suited to these transcriptions and expertly recorded with great clarity. Transcriptions have long been an essential part of the organist’s stock in trade and these are very effective re-interpretations of works which were themselves refashioned and reimagined by the composer. As a collection it would probably be one to dip into from time to time, rather than listening right through, but it is certainly a very enjoyable disc.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Bach: French Suites

Richard Egarr harpsichord
105:33 (2 CDs in a jewel case in a cardboard sleeve)
harmonia mundi HMU 907583.84

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f Julian Perkins’ recent recording gives us the scaled-down soundworld of the clavichord for these suites, Richard Egarr takes full advantage of a large Couchet double-manual harpsichord copy by Joel Katzman to show that they don’t just have to be treated as domestic music. On this recording they emerge very much as public pieces. These are exhilarating performances, sometimes brash (especially in the Courantes), but always convincing.

Tempi can be a bit fast, but the listener is swept along by Egarr’s strong sense of drive and singing lines, and by some constantly innovative ornamentation. They are very personalised readings from a performer who clearly enjoys his playing and, as in his liner notes here, likes to be a bit provocative. Egarr adds in some variant versions of the Menuet and Courante from Suite no. 2 (though unfortunately on the other CD from the Suite itself). This is very stimulating recording and is highly recommended.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Bach: French Suites

Julian Perkins clavichord
125:37 (2 CDs in a jewel case)
Resonus RES10163
+Froberger: Partita No. 2 in d, FbWV 602, Telemann: Suite in A, TWV 32:14

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]aking his cue from the fact that the clavichord was by far the most common instrument for domestic music making and personal practice in Germany, Julian Perkins’ playing makes a persuasive case for recording the French Suites on the clavichord, following on from Thurston Dart’s historic 1961 recording on that instrument. This is impressive clavichord playing, highly intelligent and nuanced, with singing lines and rhythmic security. Voicing and counterpoint are beautifully controlled and repeated sections are judiciously ornamented. Perkins includes the Preludes to Suites 4 and 6 found in some sources. He also frames the suites with Froberger’s Partita no. 2 in D minor FbWV 602 and Telemann’s Suite in A major TWV 32:14 (long erroneously attributed to Bach as BWV 824), acknowledging and adeptly illustrating those composers’ influence on Bach. Perkins plays on two Peter Bavington clavichords, copies of a diatonically fretted c. 1785 instrument by Bodechtel in Nürnberg and an unfretted 18th-century German instrument, probably by Silbermann. In making this recording Perkins has done an important service to both the clavichord and to J. S. Bach. As a different take on these well-known works it can be highly recommended.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Bertoni: Orfeo ed Euridice

Vivica Genaux Orfeo, Francesca Lonbardi-Mazzulli Euridice, Jan Petryka Imeneo, Accademia di Santo Spirito di Ferrara, Ensemble Lorenzo da Ponte, Roberto Zarpellon
70:00
Fra Bernardo fb 1601729

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]n an era when pastiche had few of the dubious undertones it has today, the emulation of popularity was widespread. As one of the most successful operas of its day, the Orfeo ed Euridice  of Gluck and Calzabigi received widespread attention from other composers, including J. C. Bach, whose pasticcio version was given when the opera was performed in London in 1770. The castrato Gaetano Guadagni, the creator of the role of Orfeo, himself composed several replacements, including ‘Che puro ciel’. New operas set to Calzabigi’s famous ‘reform’ libretto include those by Antonio Tozzi, whose version was given in Munich in 1775 and Ferdinando Bertoni, whose Orfeo ed Euridice  for Teatro S Bernadino in Venice received its premiere in January the following year. The Orfeo in both was none other than Guadagni, who would subsequently enjoy considerable success in the Bertoni role in various European centres.

In the preface to his edition, which unusually for this period was published before the first performance, Bertoni acknowledges the daunting task he has taken on. His answer was to emulate closely the setting of Gluck, as any listener familiar with Gluck’s masterpiece will immediately recognise. Indeed there are times – the chorus in act 2’s infernal scene is an example – where Bertoni comes dangerously close to plagiarism. With the exception of a change in name of the deus ex machina  from Amore to Imeneo and a few cosmetic textural changes, Calzabigi’s libretto is that as set by Gluck, as is the ‘reform’ structure of the piece, with its closely linked alternation of accompanied recitative, aria and dance. The result is an opera that has validity in its own right – much of Bertoni’s music owns to a felicitous melodic grace – but that ultimately lacks the overwhelming tragic intensity and classical nobility of its model. It is interesting that despite the success of his Orfeo, Bertoni never again experimented with ‘reform’ opera.

The present issue is taken from a live performance given in February 2014 at the Teatro Comunale in Ferrara. In general it is highly commendable, with strongly delineated direction and playing by the period instrument band, which if not the most polished of ensembles plays with verve and style. Vivica Genaux is an excellent Orfeo, singing throughout with conviction and power, her chest notes richly burnished. Genaux’s vocal acting is outstanding too, and she not only makes much of the dramatic recitatives, but is also touchingly vulnerable in the exchanges with her Euridice. That role is also sung with real authority by soprano Francesca Lombardi-Mazzulli, though the tone becomes undisciplined at times in her aria di furia  ‘Che fiero’, a rare example of conventional coloratura. Tenor Jan Petryka is a good Imeneo, singing his single (and rather conventional) aria ‘Gli sguardi trattieni’ with pleasing style.

Not for the first time in my experience with Fra Bernadino, the presentation is poor. The note is good, but only the Italian libretto is printed and that in a way in which the text often does not make syntactical sense; indeed there are places where it is downright misleading. For example, before listening I compared the text with that of the Gluck, coming to the conclusion that Bertoni had not set Orfeo’s anguished cries of ‘Euridice!’ that punctuate the opening chorus. In fact they are there, but FB have been too lazy to ensure the libretto is correctly printed. If you have a version of the Gluck, use the libretto for that. Notwithstanding caveats, the interest of this ‘other Orfeo’ and a very good performance make the CD well worth exploring.

Brian Robins

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Recording

Steffani – Crudo Amor

Eugenia Boix, Carlos Mena, Forma Antiqua, Aarón Zapico
57:59
Winter & Winter 910 231-2
+ Corbetta, J. C. F. Fischer & Kapsperger

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he colourful and active life of Agostino Steffani was founded on his early promise as a singer, a talent resulting in him being employed by the Bavarian Elector Ferdinand Maria in 1667, around the time of his 13th birthday. He would remain in Munich for 21 years, composing a number of operas for the electoral court, the last of which, Niobe  (1688), has been successfully revived (and recorded). The same year that saw the production of Niobe  also found Steffani moving to take up an appointment in Hanover in the service of Duke Ernst August, service that would include not only musical, but also diplomatic activity. Later his career would focus on ecclesiastical duties as Bishop of Spiga and, of particular importance, Apostolic Vicar in northern Germany.

Steffani’s surviving output consists wholly of vocal music, a crucial role being played by the chamber duets for two voices and continuo. For the most part composed before 1702, they incorporate a variety of forms, ranging from the up-to-date alternation of recitative and da capo aria to sectional through-composed works reminiscent of madrigal form. Among the six duets recorded here, the present CD includes two examples of the latter, of which, Occhi, perché piangete is especially striking for its opening Lento section featuring long, painful chromatic legato lines. Indeed, one of the striking aspects of these settings of Arcadian poetry dealing principally with the pain of love is Steffani’s acute response to text, which does not exclude mimetic treatment of such lines as ‘Jove’s flash between your eyes’. The duets are characterized musically by their easy mastery of counterpoint and gracious melodies, the exquisitely interwoven lines of the opening aria of Dimmi, dimmi, Cupido providing a particularly felicitous example. They are, moreover, of considerable historical importance, the influence on the chamber duets the young Handel composed in Italy readily apparent.

The performances are commendable, though not ideal, not least because the rather close acoustic does few favours to the voices; I certainly associate alto Carlos Mena’s always musical singing with having more bloom on the voice than is the case here. His soprano partner Eugenia Boix is a less finished singer – one need only compare the many imitative exchanges between the two – but it is an attractive voice, though liable to become undisciplined under pressure at times. Both singers are largely successful in expressing the texts with greater insight than is sometimes the case. I have ambivalent feelings about the continuo group of cello, theorbo, harpsichord and an anachronistic Baroque guitar. There is at times a stilted feel to their contribution, which only truly comes to life in the interspersed solo items allotted to the theorbo, harpsichord and guitar in works by Kapsberger, Fischer and Corbetta respectively.

Brian Robins

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Recording

Camilla de Rossi: Sant’ Alessio

Musica Fiorita, Daniela Dolci
64:47
Pan Classics PC 10347

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]riginally recorded some fifteen years ago, this sparkling performance of Camilla de Rossi’s fine oratorio is a welcome reissue. The work was composed in 1710 for Vienna, and follows standard oratorio practice of the time, with two acts, an ensemble of soloists who come together to form the single final chorus, and an Italian libretto. The plot is simple – Alessio is about to be wed; his parents and bride-to-be celebrate, but the call of holy asceticism is too great; Alessio renounces bride and family (to the chagrin of both) and leaves. He is eventually found some years later, after his death, having lived incognito as a beggar, and the story ends with the lamentation over his newly recognised body. Camilla de Rossi clothes this rather sad tale with some stirring and dramatic music, though (as is often the case) the best tunes seem to go to the laypeople, rather than to the saint! Alessio’s father has a particularly splendid aria with trumpets and timpani (“Sonori concenti”), calling for celebrations about the forthcoming nuptuals, which Rossi cleverly additionally uses as a dramatic awakening call for the meditating Alessio’s first appearance. The saint’s jilted bride gets the most dramatic aria (“Cielo, pietoso Cielo”) which brings the first act to a breathtaking close, alternating between adagio lament and concitato rage. In the second act Alessio at last has his chance to shine in his ecstatic final “A guerra mi sfida.” The performance is all one could wish for – Graham Pushee is a sublime Alessio, Rosa Dominguez a suitably spurned Sposa, Agnieizka Kowalczyk a fine Madre and William Lombardi a sonorous Padre. Musica Fiorita play like angels under Daniela Dolci’s expert and dramatically finely judged baton. Most enjoyable!

Alastair Harper

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Recording

Roma Æterna

New York Polyphony
72:07
BIS-2203 SACD
Guerrero: Regina cæli; Palestrina: Missa Papæ Marcelli, Tu es Petrus, Gaudent in cœlis, Sicut cervus/Sitivit anima mea; Victoria: Missa O quam gloriosum, Gaudent in cœlis

[dropcap]W[/dropcap]hat a lovely issue! New York Polyphony are an immensely polished and professional ensemble. They bring their considerable talents here to a programme of Renaissance favourites, combining Palestrina’s evergreen Missa Papae Marcelli  with his Tu es Petrus, Gaudent in cœlis  and Sicut cervus  (with its less-frequently performed secunda pars, Sitivit anima mea). The remainder of the disc is devoted to Victoria’s Missa O Quam Gloriosum, along with his setting of Gaudent in cœlis.

Despite the title, the disc begins in Seville, with a typically mellifluous (and lesser-known) Regina cæli  for four voices by Guerrero. Tone, blend and performance are all exemplary – try the glorious ‘Amen’ at the end of the Papæ Marcelli  Credo, for example, and wonder anew at Palestrina’s absolute polyphonic mastery. The recital was recorded in the suitably resonant surroundings of Omaha’s St Cecila Cathedral – allowing the many perfectly tuned final chords to linger for one’s ongoing delectation. The performance is completed and complemented by Ivan Moody’s scholarly and exemplary notes.

Alistair Harper

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Categories
Recording

Les Sauvages

Béatrice Martin harpsichord
61:02
Cypres CYP1672
Music by d’Anglebert, F Couperin, Forqueray, Rameau & Royer

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his selection of unusual, exotic and frankly weird items from the colourful output of the French school is played on an absolute beast of an instrument (Couchet 1645/Blanchet 1720) of which Béatrice Martin makes full and stylish use. She plays with great care and attention to detail – ornaments and inégalité are always convincing – though sometimes a little more overt flamboyance might not have come amiss. Even the programme order is more thoughtful than impactful – track 3 would surely make a more arresting start. But it is a really good recital. The booklet is well laid out and the notes are informative though the ‘general music lover’ might find the literary style heavy going in places. At least it’s legible.

David Hansell

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