Tag: Baroque

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Kinderman: Opitianischer Orpheus

Chamber and vocal music by Erasmus Kindermann CD cover

Lieder nach Gedichten von Martin Opitz
Ian Siedlaczek soprano, Jana Kobow tenor, United Continuo Ensemble
66:57

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Erasmus Kindermann spent most of his 39 years of life in Nürnberg, and unfortunately for him it coincided largely with the Thirty Years War. He was lucky to spend the worst of it studying in Venice, and also enjoyed the considerable artistic upswing which greeted its conclusion, which saw the publication in 1642 of his settings of poems by Martin Opitz for solo, dialoguing or duetting voices with instrumental accompaniment. This coincided with the foundation of various literary societies in Nürnberg in which new literature was encouraged, but also the poetry of Opitz from 20 years earlier was read, performed and appreciated. A key figure in all of this was Georg Philipp Harsdörffer, whose ‘Poetic Funnel’ also of 1642 through which he boasted the art of German poetry (freed of Latin) could be poured in just six hours! Although Kindermann’s surviving portrait shows a man aged and haggard before his time, his Opitz settings are delightfully cheery, bucolic affairs with perky short-phrased tunes that seem to relate to the simplicity of folk music. The performances here are completely charming, with both singers instilling just the right amount of drama and expression into these beguiling songs. The cover of the first volume of Kindermann’s “Opitianischer Orpheus” depicts a small consort grouped around a table in a domestic setting presumably performing the contents of the publication, and the present forces evoke this delightful scene to perfection. The United Continuo Ensemble comprises two violins, gamba, harp, harpsichord and organ, and independently contributes a couple of violin sonatas by Kindermann to the programme. It is indeed a shame that Kindermann survived plague, war and financial ruin only to die just after peace promised a genuine cultural Renaissance in his home city. Remarkable too that his music seems genuinely so optimistic and without the shadow of the desperate times he had lived through. The same could be said of the poetry of Martin Opitz, regarded by many as ‘the father of German literature’, who died in 1639 at the age of just 43, having misguidedly demanded change from a beggar, who turned out to be suffering from the plague – a lockdown lesson for us all perhaps!

D. James Ross

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Amor, Fortuna et Morte

Amor Fortuna et Morte CD cover

Madrigals by de Rore, Luzzaschi, Gesualdo & Monteverdi
Profeti della Quinta
64:21
Pan Classics PC 10396

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This collection of madrigals has been compiled for the excellent reason that the singers of the Profeti della Quinta love singing them. Interestingly the composers they choose span the 16th and the first half of the 17th centuries – Cipriano de Rore was born in 1515/6 and died in 1565, while Monteverdi was born in 1567 and died in 1643. While there is considerable variety here, various musical and thematic threads run all the way through the programme. The five male voices, joined in the later works by lute, achieve a remarkable blend and purity of intonation, and sing these madrigals with intense expression and musical intelligence. In addition to some very familiar material, we have an extraordinary madrigal by Scipione Lacorcia, who manages to outdo his model Gesualdo in harmonic eccentricity and melodic waywardness! The recording of Monteverdi’s “Lamento della Ninfa” (13) is a hair-raising aberration, as one of the group’s male altos hideously droops and swoops around Monteverdi’s melodic line in a style verging on caricature. Famously, Monteverdi asks the soloist to sing ‘at the beat of the emotions’ – however, this clearly means singing with a degree of mensural freedom rather than approximating the actual notes in a sort of anachronistic Sprechgesang. Just awful, but mercifully unique on the CD. Interspersed among the madrigals, we also have a number of pieces for solo lute, some of them very effective arrangements of madrigals. Founded in Galilee by the eminent singer/harpsichordist/director/composer Elam Rotem, Profeti della Quinta is now based in Basel.

D. James Ross

 

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Locatelli: L’Arte del Violino Op. III

Locatelli op 3 Diego Conti CD cover

Diego Conti, Gli Archi di Firenze
212:04 (3 CDs in a card triptych)
Tactus TC 691280

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This comprehensive 3-CD set presents the twelve violin concertos of Locatelli’s op111 Art of the Violin recorded in a variety of venues over a period of ten years from 1988 to 1998 by Diego Conti and Gli Archi di Firenzi. Locatelli was one of a handful of violin virtuosi who completely revolutionised the musical world of the 18th century, and his 24 eye-wateringly virtuosic capriccii ad libitum published along with the concerti serve as cadenzas. From the outset, Diego Conti’s sparkling and showy playing seems to summon the ghost of Locatelli, and, if the liberties he takes with tempo must have driven his Archi di Firenze to near distraction over the years, I am quite sure that the flamboyant Locatelli would have done exactly the same! It is of course in the wild capriccii that Conti’s full virtuosity is put to the test, and he comes out of these with flying colours. If the playing of the ensemble sounds a little lacklustre by comparison, this is maybe inevitable and perhaps even part of Locatelli’s original design. Of all the achievements of HIP performers over the years, I find the recreation of the music of these violin virtuosi perhaps the most revelatory and remarkable – to master a period instrument, bow and technique so thoroughly as to be able to rival these extraordinary virtuosi of the past is truly amazing! If Locatelli’s capriccii never quite go in the direction you would expect, neither did his life – having spent his career doing the unexpected, he then retired to Amsterdam in his mid-twenties in mid-career and seemed satisfied with a life of luxurious solitude, enjoying the financial fruits of his previous concert life and his publications. 

D. James Ross

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The Early Horn

Ursula Paludin Monberg, Arcangelo, The Early Horn CD cover

Ursula Paludan Monberg, Arcangelo, Jonathan Cohen
78;32
hyperion CDA68289
Music by Graun, Haydn, L & W A Mozart, Telemann & anon

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After dropping apparently fully-formed into its role as an orchestral instrument in Handel’s Water Music, the horn very soon became an indispensable part of the Baroque and Classical orchestra. This CD explores its parallel pivotal role in 18th-century chamber music and illustrates how quickly composers cottoned on to the horn’s musical potential, while at the same time the technical developments instigated by players extended the instrument’s range. The opening track is a beautiful sinfonia da camera for horn and strings by Leopold Mozart, while a concerto and a trio by Graun, two anonymous Concerti from a Swedish source, a concerto by Telemann, a divertimento by Haydn and the E-flat-major horn quintet by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart all chart the horn’s development from Baroque to Classical instrument. The music selected for this CD shares the feature of being delightfully entertaining, while the anonymous concerti for horn, oboe d’amore and continuo and for horn, two oboes and continuo are particularly charming. The concerto for recorder, horn and continuo by Telemann is also predictably accomplished and engaging. Playing a wonderfully coiled Baroque horn, Ursula Paludin Monberg produces a beautifully rounded tone and displays a consummate playing technique. She is ably supported by the players of Arcangelo directed from the harpsichord by Jonathan Cohen. There is a wonderful inevitability about the thoroughly classical strains of the familiar Mozart quintet (K407) with which the CD concludes – we feel we have been informatively conducted from the horn’s early years in serious music to one of the pinnacles of the repertoire.

D. James Ross

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Vitali: Sonate op. 5, 1669

Vitali op 5 CD cover

Italico Splendore
66:42
Tactus TC 632205

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CD cover of Vitali op 5 sonatas

Italico Splendore are exploring the riches of the Ducal Library of the Este family in Modena, and the present CD is devoted to the chamber music of Giovanni Vitali, who worked as maestro di cappella at the court there from 1674. Himself a virtuoso on the ‘violone da brazzo’, a forerunner of the cello/double bass, Vitali’s influence on the role of the violin as well as the standard Baroque musical forms was considerable. It is fascinating to observe in his opus 5 sonate side by side with standard trio sonatas, sonate a due (without an independent part for violone) but also sonate a quarto and a cinque. As with many composers of the second half of the 17th century, Vitali displays a freedom of thinking and a musical imagination which found itself somewhat tamed in the following century. Italico Splendore play with an easy spontaneity, with suitable episodes of bravura alternating with intensely expressive passages. The blend of solo instruments and continuo team is pleasing, and the overall sound vivid and engaging. When we reach the four- and five-part sonatas, the increasing richness of the texture is welcome. Each of the sonatas bears the name of a local aristocratic family, surely an astute way of attracting financial support for Vitali’s musical activity.

D. James Ross

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Monteverdi: Madrigals Book 9

Monteverdi Madrigals book 9 Longhini CD cover

Scherzi Musicali
Delitiæ Musicæ, Marco Longhini
74:37
Naxos 8.555318

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As Marco Longhini reaches the last of Monteverdi’s Madrigal Books, the posthumously published 9th Book, I find I still have many of the same reservations that I had at the start of the series. The use of an all-male ensemble entails the group’s countertenors being cast as a range of lovelorn maidens, nymphs and shepherdesses, and for all the gusto with which they throw themselves into these roles, I remain unconvinced, particularly as there is no evidence that there was any sort of restriction on women singing this music. I’m afraid I am also less than convinced by Longhini’s countertenors themselves, who in contrast to the other male voices never seem entirely comfortable vocally. I remain similarly unconvinced by the prominent participation of harpsichord in the accompanying textures – often a madrigal is beautifully introduced by a continuo ensemble comprising various plucked instruments and cello only for a harpsichord to muscle in on the texture. Having voiced my main reservations, Longhini’s instinct for the potential drama in this music has not diminished during the project, and if it could occasionally be accused of being a little over-theatrical, it is certainly never dull. The singing is generally good, with only occasional intonation lapses, and is musically pretty convincing and delicately ornamented. The madrigal performances are introduced by a lovely instrumental Sinfonia by Biagio Marini, and the balance of the CD is made up of the Monteverdi’s Scherzi Musicali, a collection of ariettas published in 1632 and of which only a single copy survives. Interestingly, Longhini makes plausible use of a number of instrumental ritornelli which appear in the original publication, and which are normally ignored by performers, to link in conclusion a selection of the ariettas together. I found myself wondering how much the oddly immediate acoustic was to blame for my discomfort with some of the singing – although the recording was made in the Chiesa di San Pietro in Vincola, there is little hint of any bloom in the performance. This ‘in-your-face’ ambience is emphasised by the opening madrigal, in which the countertenor soloist emerges from a resonant distance abruptly to jump out of your speakers at you! Certainly theatrical, but oddly unsettling. I wanted to enjoy this CD more, and can only hope that some listeners derive more consistent pleasure than I did from what is clearly an important complete account of the Monteverdi Madrigals.

D. James Ross

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Barbara Strozzi: Virtuosa of Venice

Barbara Strozzi CD cover Fieri Consort

Fieri Consort
67:18
Fieri Records FIER003VOV
With music by Ferrari, Fontei, Kapsperger, Maione, Monteverdi & Selma y Salaverde

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It is good to see Barbara Strozzi’s music receiving more attention – as more of it becomes familiar, it is clear that she deserves her own place in the history of early Baroque music. As a female composer and performer, her considerable success was greeted with some suspicion in her own lifetime, and even in our own day, acceptance of her skills has been slow and grudging. Her image as a serious performer/composer is perhaps not helped by the familiar bare-breasted portraits, but she was a pupil of the Monteverdi’s pupil, Francesco Cavalli, and was a prolific composer with seven books of madrigals, arias and cantatas plus a collection of sacred music to her name. That this large body of work was published is sometimes ascribed to the prominence of her father as a member of the prestigious Accademia degli Incogniti, but, as more and more of her stylistically varied music comes to be performed, it becomes clear that she was probably being published entirely on her own merits. The Fieri Consort fields six voices in various permutations with gamba, lute/theorbo and harp to present a selection from throughout the composer’s musical life. Thus we travel from the flirty music of the early madrigal collections to the more intense music of the late more profound lagrime. The fact that her music stands up very well beside the pieces by Monteverdi, Nicolò Fontei and Kapsperger with which the consort alternate her songs is a mark of their quality.  The singing and playing are generally good, if the ornamentation occasionally sounds a little laboured, and I like the variety of voices, which appear mainly in dialoguing pairs, as well as the subtlety of the instrumental accompaniments. 

D. James Ross

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Dowland: Lachrimae

Opera Prima Consort play Dowland Lachrimae CD cover

Opera Prima Consort, Cristiano Contadin
59:32
Brilliant Classics 95699

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This is a delightfully fresh look at the very familiar Lachrimae Pavans with associated Pavans, Galliards and Almands. The use of alto viola and violins on the upper lines is entirely authentic and gives the overall sound an engaging edge, while some daringly adventurous and ultimately beautifully musical divisions on the repeats of each section transform these performances into something very special. In addition to breaking the traditional viol consensus, Cristiano Contadin also introduces a recorder, which brings its own heightened level of intricacy to the repeat divisions. I am not entirely convinced by the recorder sometimes popping in and out, playing only on some repeats, and am happier with it playing the written line first time and then embarking on its divisions on the repeat having established its presence already. This is very much a personal whim, and I have to say that in practice both Contadin’s solutions, if a little unorthodox, work very well. The performances of the ensuing Galliards and Almans are wonderfully free and inventive, quirky and virtuosic, casting a bold new light on this terrific music. The playing is wonderfully expressive throughout, recalling my hitherto favourite 1985 account by Jakob Lindberg and the Dowland Consort on BIS. I have to say that the felicitous mixture of violins and viols and the deft ornamentation of repeats may just have won me over to this exciting new account! Highly recommended.

D. James Ross

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Resonanze

Resonanze CD of solo gamba music from the baroque and modern periods

music for viola da gamba
Ibrahim Aziz
63:31
First Hand Records FHR83
Abel, J. S. Bach, Martínez Gil, Rowe & Schenck

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This CD is a vehicle for the gamba virtuosity of Ibrahim Aziz. The programme consists of two Baroque pieces and two modern compositions for gamba, and an arrangement of the Bach second cello Suite. Notwithstanding Aziz’s formidable technique and sonorous tone, I found this the least successful piece on the recording, being so familiar with the work as a cello piece and feeling that the gamba with its frets acted as a restraint on the player. Carlos Martínez Gil’s Suite Estiu is very much in the neo-Baroque style, a nostalgic homage to the gamba compositions of the 18th century. He manages to find unusual textures and resonances in the work’s five varied movements, as does gambist and composer, Rebecca Rowe, in her impressive 2018 composition Journeying, specifically written for Ibrahim Aziz. As a player of the instrument, she seems more confident and enterprising than Martínez Gil in her exploration of its potential. The Three Pieces by Carl Friedrich Abel are surprisingly consequential, although this is hardly surprising from the leading gamba virtuoso in London in the 18th century. Curious to think of his gifted pupil, the painter Thomas Gainsborough, working away diligently on this sort of repertoire. The D-minor Suite V by another 18th-century gambist/composer Johann Schenck is the most substantial work in the programme, technically dazzling and musically powerful. It is not surprising to learn that his music was widely published and performed throughout Europe, although the present suite survives in manuscript only. This is a delightfully varied CD, demonstrating the full and varied potential of the gamba in the hands of a capable and wonderfully gifted young player. 

D. James Ross

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Handel: Works for Viola da Gamba & Harpsichord

CD cover of Handel gamba sonatas recording by Aziz and Yamamoto

Ibrahim Aziz, Masumi Yamamoto
77:26
First Hand Records FHR91

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This CD of music by Handel for viola da gamba and harpsichord presents the G-minor Sonata HWV 364b and a couple of contested works, which may be the work of the young Handel along with a series of arrangements, respectively of the A-major Violin Sonata and the Keyboard Suites HWV 448 and 437. As fillers, we have the Suite HWV 429 for solo harpsichord in a copy by Gottlieb Muffat and a Prélude from a gamba suite by Sainte-Colombe le fils. So, while the title may not strictly describe what is ‘in the tin’, the performers have been distinctly imaginative and enterprising in their choice of repertoire. The playing is beautiful, with some wonderfully poignant gamba sounds from Aziz, who also displays a deft virtuosity on the instrument, while Yamamoto provides an impressively responsive accompaniment. Particularly intriguing are the musicians’ solo slots. The very conservative piece, thoroughly in the French style, by Saint-Colombe le fils, could easily be by his father, Jean, who taught the legendary Marin Marais – this in spite of the fact that S-C le fils was working in London at the same time as Handel. The edition of Handel’s HWV 429 suite for harpsichord by Gottlieb Theofile Muffat, son of the more imminent Georg Muffat, is intriguingly revelatory of performance practice at the time. Gottlieb Muffat, also a keyboard composer in his own right, spent his whole life in Vienna, and it is fascinating to think of him bringing his version of the music of Handel to the Austrian public in the generation before Mozart would find an audience for his Handel adaptations. Did he feel that Handel’s music needed ‘adapted’ to suit the Viennese taste, or as a composer/player could he just not bear to keep his hands off this fine repertoire? Throughout his lifetime, Handel was dogged by breaches of what would now be called copyright, but this is something else entirely – more akin to an homage from an admiring fellow composer. This is a thought-provoking and musically very satisfying CD.

D. James Ross