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Recording

Trevor Pinnock: Journey

Two hundred years of harpsichord music
68:00
Linn Records CKD570
Bull, Byrd, Cabezón, Frescobaldi, Handel, D. Scarltti, Sweelinck & Tallis

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his recording represents more than one journey: there is Pinnock’s own musical odyssey of over forty years, played on a harpsichord which has accompanied him for all of that time (a Hemsch copy made by David Jacques Way); there is the journey implied in the CD’s subtitle: ‘two hundred years of harpsichord music’. In his lucid liner notes John Butt points to other journeys too: the emergence of keyboard music as a genre in its own right and the parallel development of distinct instruments on which to play it. Pinnock has chosen a programme ranging from variations by Cabezón, Byrd, Tallis, Bull and Sweelinck, through some Frescobaldi to Bach’s 6th French Suite and Handel’s extended Chaconne in G, and finishing with Scarlatti’s K490-92 Sonatas. He includes pieces which would be on many harpsichordists’ desert island list, though oddly enough nothing from France. Stylistic distinctions inevitably get a bit smoothed out in this grand sweep on a single instrument. but what we get in return is a real sense of how the harpsichord’s potential has been harnessed by successive generations.

Pinnock’s strongest suite is his rhythmic precision and impeccable sense of timing which brings out the relentless logic of the Bach and Handel, or of Scarlatti’s K490 Sonata. Pinnock’s contribution to our understanding of baroque music has been immense; I can still remember my own shock and awe moment on first hearing his English Concert playing Purcell back in 1982. The youthful sparkle might not be so visible in Matthias Tarn’s recent photo of Pinnock in the CD booklet, but there is no dimming in the exuberance of his playing.

Noel O’Regan

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Categories
Recording

Miniaturen

Ricardo Magnus harpsichord
ambitus am 96 958
Agrell, J. Chr. Fr. & J. S. Bach, La Barre, De Bury, Buxtehude, F. & L. Couperin, Dandrieu, Fischer, Graupner, Handel, Kirnberger, Kuhnau, Mattheson, Mozart, Purcell, Rameau, Ritter, Le Roux, Scarlatti & Telemann

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]n this recording Ricardo Magnus celebrates the miniature with 39 pieces, some lasting barely a minute. Drawing the analogy with miniature paintings, he is keen to showcase what shorter baroque pieces have to offer, providing a broad selection of music by composers from every tradition, ranging from Louis Couperin to Mozart. The elder Couperin is the most heavily featured, with six tracks, including some unmeasured preludes. Many of the other pieces on the recording were also designed as preludes, written in an improvisatory style and setting up an expectation of something more structured to follow, an expectancy which is often frustrated here. On the other hand Magnus and his producers have risen well to the challenge of providing continuity over so many tracks and the result is not at all as fragmented as might be expected. Playing on a Taskin copy by Thomas Schüler, Magnus is respectful of different styles, playing with flexibility and adding appropriate ornamentation. This is a different approach to programme building, but one which works very well in giving listeners a chance to hear some less familiar music in an unusual context.

Noel O’Regan

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Categories
Recording

Fischer: Uranie

Elisabeth Joyé harpsichord & organ
66:00
Encelade ECL1402

[dropcap]J.[/dropcap] S. Bach’s liking for the works of Fischer was attested to by his son C. P. E. Bach. The long-lived Fischer died aged 90 just four years before J. S. Bach. Born in Bohemia he spent most of his life in the service of the Margrave of Baden in Rastatt. This collection of suites and pieces for harpsichord, as well as preludes, fugues and ricercars for organ, shows his mastery of the various styles prevalent between the publication of his Pièces de Clavessin  in 1696 and his Musikalischer Parnassus  in 1636. The harpschord suites are very French in style, with the usual collection of dance movements; there is also an impressive passacaglia, a couple of chaconnes and a set of variations. The organ preludes and fugues are short and undeveloped but there is a more extended and satisfying chaconne played on the organ, as well as a festive Ricercar for Easter. Joyé plays on a copy of a Fleisher 1720 harpsichord by Philippe Humeau and a baroque German-style organ made by Quentin Blumenroeder, both full-bodied instruments which fit the music very well and are sympathetically recorded. She manages the contrast between the stricter and more improvised forms very well and proves an excellent advocate for Fischer’s music.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Pasquini: Suites and Variations

Lydia Maria Blank harpsichord

Et’cetera KTC1532

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]ccupying a chronological and stylistic position between Frescobaldi and Domenico Scarlatti, Pasquini’s toccatas owe much to the former while the suites show a more French susceptibility. His variation sets are a particularly successful blend of styles and techniques. All are ably played here by Lydia Maria Blank on a copy of an 18th-century Italian harpsichord by Christian Fuchs with a mellow virginal-like sound which suits this music very well and is well recorded. As well as the five suites and six variation sets of the title there are three toccatas. The suites have varying numbers of movements and have no sarabandes, leaving them a bit lop-sided in contrast to those of French composers or of Froberger. But this is bright sparkling music, played with intelligence and panache and with lots of satisfyingly idiomatic ornaments on repeats. There are also very informative liner notes.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

D. Scarlatti: Keyboard Sonatas

Virginia Black piano
58:18
CRD 3533
K27, 87, 114, 124, 132, 159, 208, 260, 401, 427, 461 & 492

[Dropcap]A[/dropcap]fter recording Scarlatti and Soler on the harpsichord, Virginia Black turns to a modern Yamaha piano for this disc containing 12 of her favourite sonatas, which cover the full range of the composer’s keyboard output. Many are among those most commonly recorded but there are some lesser-known pieces too. Black’s piano playing is relatively restrained when compared to some modern pianists’ performances of Scarlatti and she retains much of her harpsichordist’s sensibility in her approach to the music. She brings great technical control and clearly relishes all the figuration and other challenges. The playing and recording are bright and clear and all this makes the disc an excellent introduction to the composer’s music.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Mersenne’s Clavichord

Keyboard Music in 16th- and 17th-century France
Terence Charlston
68:36
divine art dda 25134

[Dropcap]T[/dropcap]his is not just another recording of French 16th- and 17th-century keyboard music but the result of a fascinating project by Terence Charlton and the maker Peter Bavington to reconstruct the clavichord illustrated in Marin Mersenne’s Harmonie Universelle  published in 1636/7. Since no French clavichord of the period survives, this reconstruction was both challenging and particularly welcome. The result – while much is conjectural – has a plausible sound and works very well in this music.

Charlston showcases the instrument with a programme covering the whole range of French keyboard genres and composers from Antoine de Févin (b. 1470) to Nicholas Lebègue (b. c. 1631). He shows the instrument’s full compass as well as its ability in imitative, improvisatory and dance music, and particularly effectively in an echo piece. To some extent he is scouring the byways to obtain repertory, particularly for the 16th century and not all the music is of the highest quality, but all is played with great commitment. The playing is cleanly articulated and allows the instrument to speak clearly, aided by excellent recording quality from the Royal College of Music studio. Charlston and Bavington have written extended liner notes covering the construction of the instrument and the choice of music. This is another highly successful and important project from Charlston who is indefatigable in his championing of early keyboard instruments and their music.

Noel O’Regan

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Recording

Im Dienste des Königs / The King’s Men

Jermaine Sprosse harpsichord & fortepiano
63:28
klanglogo KL1505
C. P. E. Bach: Sonatas in A Wq55/4 and c Wq65/31, 12 Variationen über die Folie d’Espagne Wq118/9
Carl Fasch: Sonata in F
Nichelmann: Sonata VI in F

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he King referred to in the title is Frederick II (the Great) of Prussia, with this disc featuring music by three composers who worked at his court: C. P. E. Bach, Christoph Nichelmann and Carl F. C. Fasch. It is a disc of two halves, with the extended Sonata in A (Wq 55/4) and the Folia Variations by C. P. E. Bach, as well as Nichelmann’s Sonata VI, played on a Ruckers copy (with ravalement) by Titus Crijnen, while a second Bach Sonata in C minor (Wq 65/31) and an F major Sonata by Fasch are played on a copy of a Stein Fortepiano by Bernhard Fleig. As a harpsichordist Sprosse is busy, rather too fast and lacking in poise. His playing can be exciting, but without any great subtlety in the two sonatas, even in the slower movements. The Folia, however, is less rushed and more nuanced. On the fortepiano, on the other hand, Sprosse is more measured and plays with more texture and contrast. There is also more resonance on the harpsichord tracks than on those with fortepiano, which tends to compound the busyness of the former. Both Nichelmann’s and Fasch’s sonatas get their first recorded performances here: they are diverting pieces in the pre-Classical style, not indulging over much in Empfindsamkeit, though the Fasch has some nice quirky moments in its finale. These are sparky performances of interesting music, with lots of well-judged ornamentation on repeats, and are certainly worth listening to.

Noel O’Regan

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Sheet music

Froberger: Neue Ausgabe…

New Edition of the Complete Works VII… Works for Ensemble and Catalogue of the Complete Works  (FbWV)…
Edited by Siegbert Rampe.
Bärenreiter BA 2928. xii + 100pp, £37.00.

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his is the conclusion of Bärenreiter’s new edition of Froberger’s output, and is important primarily for the thematic catalogue, which begins at p. 29. It is preceded by two works for 2 vlns, STB & organ – Alleluia absorta est mors & Apparuerunt Apostolis. I do find the asterisks confusing, and it could be helped by notating the parts and score identically: the opening triple time abandons the four-bar patterns for the instruments. They are worth performing. The third piece is a Capriccio a4, probably for SSTB, though there is no need to assume that strings are the only forces available. Attempts to perform it earlier on keyboard were not very satisfactory. The wide gap between the third and fourth parts implies the need for an additional keyboard or plucker. All three pieces are notated in German tablature.

The catalogue is thorough. There may be later or unknown sources, but the editor will make sure that they are circulated to the experts: is there a specific place to find them? There are separate series for Toccatas (101-130), Fantasias (201-214), Canzons (301-308), Ricercars (401-416), Capricci for keyboard (501-525), Partitas, etc., for keyboard (601-659) and music for ensembles (701-707), and finally two pages of appendix; pp. 95-98 list the sources, and there is a list of major editions on p. 99 and a bibliography on p. 100.

I like the idea of a catalogue merged with the complete works. I’ve missed Vols I & II, but I have the rest and enjoy playing them. I don’t have access to the sources, so that limits my abilities. The price is reasonable for Vol. VII, though I’m puzzled by a label at the bottom right of the first page where Bärenreiter refers to “Complete Works Vol VII2”.

The complete Froberger edition is available for £295.50.

Clifford Bartlett

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Sheet music

Koželuch… Complete Sonatas for Keyboard IV: Sonatas 38-50…

Edited by Christopher Hogwood.
Bärenreiter (BA 9514), 2015. xxxix + 219pp, £31.00.
[The complete 4 volumes £103.50.]

[dropcap]K[/dropcap]oželuch was born in 1747 near Prague and died in Vienna in 1818. This final volume begins with Nos 38-40: Hogwood chose a Viennese publisher in 1810, though earier prints appeared in 1807 and other issues before the favoured edition. 41-43 were published in London in 1809. The rest were unpublished. “Keyboard” is the best heading for the four volumes, though by the 1800 the casual title of “piano” is appropriate. Dynamics are mostly f, p & sf, with an occasional dolce, cresc. & dim. Ped  is often used, with * presumably intended to indicate that the pedal be raised just before the next chord.

Christopher Hogwood produced a magnificent edition. This volume appeared after his death, but I assume that it was all finished before then. Any editions by him have always been prepared with great care. The Introduction is substantial in English, Czech and German, though the thorough critical commentaries are only in English. It ends with a list of the 50 sonatas, including the incipit of the openings. Whether the music stands with Haydn and Mozart is another matter.

Clifford Bartlett

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Recording

En sol – Musique pour le Roi-Soleil

Rebecca Maurer harpsichord
70:30
Genuin GEN 15352
d’Anglebert, François & Louis Couperin, de la Guerre, Lully, Le Roux & Royer

[dropcap]I[/dropcap] must say that I think Ms Maurer is pushing her luck when she suggests that the use of G (sol) major and minor by French composers at the court of Le Roi-Soleil  was a subtle tribute to the boss – they’re just incredibly common keys in the period (lots of Bach cantatas in G minor, for instance). And she doesn’t quite have the courage of her convictions: I wouldn’t have minded a complete programme ‘in G’ but we get visits from C, F and B flat too.

Still, it would be a shame not to have Couperin’s Les Baricades Mistérieuses  on this sumptuous instrument (the Neuchâtel 1632/1745 Ruckers). What we have in effect, therefore, is a rather well played recital of French harpsichord music ranging from the almost tentative musings of the opening d’Anglebert Prélude  to the lunacy that is Royer’s Le Vertigo  and that is surely no bad thing. The supporting essay, apart from the optimistic special pleading, is very good.

David Hansell

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