Elinor Frey / Lorenzo Ghielmi BERLIN SONATAS

 

BERLIN SONATAS

 

Controcorrente Orchestra BACH SONS

BACH SONS

 

Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin / Bernhard Forck BEETHOVEN Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2 C.P.E. BACHSymphonies Wq 175 & 183/4

SYMPHONIES Nos. 1 & 2

Benjamin Appl /Berliner Barock Solisten / Reinhard Goebel CANTATAS OF THE BACH FAMILY

CANTATAS OF THE BACH FAMILY

Tamsin Waley-Cohen / James Baillieu C.P.E. BACH Complete Original Works for Violin & Keyboard

COMPLETE ORIGINAL WORKS FOR VIOLIN & KEYBOARD

New Collegium / Claudio Ribeiro CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH Empfindsam

EMPFINDSAM

Charlotte Mattax Moersch THE BACH LEGACY

THE BACH LEGACY

Simona Marchesi QUEL CHE L'ARPA DICE

QUEL CHE L'ARPA DICE

Nicolas Altstaedt / Arcangelo / Jonathan Cohen C.P.E. BACH Cello Concertos

                                                            CELLO CONCERTOS

Jean Rondeau BACH DYNASTIE

                                                                BACH DYNASTIE

Trio Maurice Bourgue J. HAYDN / W.F. BACH / C.P.E. BACH Trios for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano

Keyboard trios scored for oboe and bassoon instead of the usual strings are rare in the chamber repertory, especially in the 18th century. Only the Dresden composer Johann Gottlieb Naumann is known to have written six sonatinas for oboe, bassoon and keyboard instrument, and even these are an arrangement of his quartets for harpsichord and strings. In Hamburg in around 1775 Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach did, however, write “Six Little Sonatas for Clavier, B flat Clarinet and Bassoon”, while the young Beethoven – at that date still living in Bonn – composed a Trio for flute, bassoon and keyboard. These historical prototypes have inspired Maurice Bourgue and Sergio Azzolini to work together on the present release. Joseph Haydn’s London keyboard trios for violoncello, flute and keyboard are heard here in arrangements for oboe, bassoon and keyboard, while the second part of the programme features arrangements of sonatas by Bach’s two oldest sons, here transcribed as trios for winds and keyboard.

Shani Diluka / Orchestre de Chambre de Paris / Ben Glassberg TEMPÉRAMENTS

Shani Diluka has given us some unusual programmes on the Mirare label in the past, including Schubert’s final great sonata with an assortment of other short pieces by the master, and Road 66 with American composers. So what are we to make of this assortment of C.P.E. Bach solo works, plus one concerto, a couple of pieces by Mozart and a change of instrument in the last 10 minutes?
Quite a lot as it happens. Diluka’s way with C.P.E. Bach is deeply poetic and involving in the opening Andante con tenerezza, with the sharpest of contrasts in the spectacular Solfeggietto that follows. The weight here is somewhat in favour of Bach over Mozart, and we are kept in anticipation as to “the filial, even spiritual relationship” between these two composers. The Variations sur le thème de la Folia has just about everything, from tender reminiscence to extrovert showmanship that at times looks as much towards Beethoven as anything else. Diluka’s touch is pearlescent in the quieter music, with plenty of colour and steely edge when the mood changes.

The Concerto in D minor might seem like a centrepiece, but in many ways feels more like a continuation of the wide expressive palette to which we’ve been treated until now. The Orchestre de chambre de Paris is given an early music finish with harpsichord continuo adding spice to the refined string sound and the modern piano is a hefty machine against this backdrop, but the music and musicianship are both superb, with Bach’s declamatory drama presented with emphasis in the opening Allegro. The central Poco andante is more Mozartean, with simple textures and expressive lines exchanging between soloist and orchestra, the final Allegro assai drawing on dramatic techniques that connect us with Vivaldi as well as propelling us into the explosive extremes of C.P.E. Bach’s personal idiom. The link with Mozart is given some added brushstrokes in well-placed cadenzas by Shani Diluka that refer to Mozart’s Concerto D. 466, one that shares its D minor tonality with this work.
Bach’s Abschied von meinem Silbermanischen Klaviere in einem Rondo is another special choice in the context of this programme, given that we’re comparing period with modern instruments as well as composers. Full of contemplative reflection and “nourished by the imagination of lost sounds” this is both a reminiscence and an exploration, with some striking moments which demand repeated hearing. Having become attuned to C.P.E. Bach, Mozart’s Sonata in A minor K.310 does indeed take on a new aspect. Diluka doesn’t change her touch particularly between composers, so there is an almost seamless transition and we hear Mozart’s contrasts in the light of what has gone before. It is only as the form develops and Mozart’s individual shaping of his musical paragraphs roll out that we sense a different imagination at work. Mozart’s dramas are less fleeting in this work, though the contrasts are in many ways no less extreme. Diluka doesn’t force the point in the opening Allegro maestoso, but she doesn’t really have to. Mozart’s operatic side comes more to the fore in the central Andante cantabile con espressione, the notes gathering into vocal ensembles as much as they can be aria-like. C.P.E. Bach is more cabaret than opera with these kinds of mood, surprising us with quick changes and variety, where Mozart reaches out with longer arcs, the diversions from which are given time to take on more concrete identities. I really like Diluka’s touch in this piece; not overdoing things, but delivering each emotive high point with the right kind of weight.
There is an inevitable disturbing drop in pitch between the modern piano and the 1790 Walter fortepiano, reportedly Mozart’s favourite type of piano, in a faithful copy by Chris Maene. Mozart’s Fantaisie in D minor K.397, one of his most C.P.E. Bach-like pieces, sounds superb on this instrument. Silky softness contrasts with metallic edges to maximise the sort of effect Mozart must have been after, Diluka proving her skill in keeping things together on an instrument with a fragility to its sound that only adds to the intensity of the experience.
The programme ends with a reprise of the Andante con tenerezza on this fortepiano, which makes for an interesting comparison between instruments. The lack of sustain makes for a less lyrical performance, but by no means a less interesting one. Diluka gets to the heart of this music and takes us with her very effectively. This programme might seem a little eccentric at first glance, but all is justified by the time you reach the end and have the feeling you’d want to hear it all over again straight away. With excellent recorded sound and wonderful playing, this is a path strewn with gems you just want to pick up and take home to keep. (Dominy Clements)

Guy Fishman / Members of Handel and Haydn Society C.P.E. BACH Concerti for Cello

“A musician cannot hope to move the listener unless he himself is moved. He must of necessity feel all of the affects that he hopes to arouse in his audience, for the revealing of his own humour will stimulate a like humour in his listener."

Have there ever been words more germane to the central mission of all musicians than these? Written by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, they are found in his Versuch Ober die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen ("Essay on the True Art of Keyboard Playing"), and though they are inscribed in a book seemingly aimed at the craft of playing an instrument, they reveal their author's true purpose to have been the art of making music, and the life-changing force he believed this endeavor to be.

During his time in Berlin he penned some of the most affecting and expressive music of the 18th century, including the three works on this recording. Take the Concerto in A major, for instance. The exuberance of the orchestral opening cannot be mistaken for anything other than pure joy in music-making, and hardly betrays its author's unhappy circumstances. Ample virtuosity evinces a complete understanding of the cello and sits well under the hand but is difficult enough that only a rare cellist dispatches it with a dry forehead. The soloist's use of material originating with the orchestra - and vice versa - hints at the absolute synergy amongst disparate parts that Emanuel must have learned from his only teacher, Johann Sebastian. This feature serves as fodder for an interplay between soloist and ensemble where one begins a thought and the other finishes it. It is found frequently in the Concerto in A minor, at times exciting, as in the third movement, and at others intimate, as in the single-note utterances in the second movement. The first movement is set like a drama, and reminds me of the similarity between music-making and acting, especially when Emanuel's exhortation to move the listener is observed. (Guy Fishman)

Silvia Márquez CHACONNERIE

Chaconnerie is a recording that deals with repetition. Chaconnerie illustrates that particular principle of Art that seeks to combine elements over and over again to achieve balance and unity. Chaconnerie encourages us to undertake a voyage in which sounds –through the centuries– build upon an insistently repeated, or imaginatively varied, scheme. Repetition has been a major element of humankind’s artistic manifestations and expressions ever since the time of the moais on Easter Island up to the drawings of Max C. Escher. Repetition is rhythm, pulse, and life, and life overflows in the chaconne, a dance whose origin Lope de Vega attributed to the American Indian (“from the Indies to Seville / it has come by post”) and whose character Miguel de Cervantes describes as lascivious and immoral. With its accent on the second beat and its variations on a harmonic scheme, this dancing base – together with sarabandes, folias, and passacaglias – was conducive to improvisation on chordal progressions, a novelty that had a crucial impact on Baroque music in Europe.

Daniel Barenboim MAX & MAESTRO

Daniel Barenboim, one of the world’s greatest classical artists and a staunch champion of music’s civilising power, has signed a new and exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon. The partnership was announced on 8 March 2018, just days after the first anniversary of the Pierre Boulez Saal, Maestro Barenboim’s pioneering project devoted to the promotion of cultural exchange and dialogue.

The Berlin connection will be significant throughout his new and future recordings for the yellow label – Barenboim will work with the Staatskapelle Berlin, the Staatsoper unter den Linden, the Boulez Ensemble and members of the Barenboim-Said Akademie. Many of his recordings will be made in the flexible space of the Boulez Saal, home to the Barenboim-Said Akademie, a centre for the cultivation of communication, listening and understanding.

“I welcome this exclusive relationship with Deutsche Grammophon and believe that it will introduce the philosophy of the Pierre Boulez Saal, with its vision of the ‘thinking ear’ and of active, engaged listening, to a large new audience,” says Daniel Barenboim. “We want to share what happens when performers explore music on all levels – emotional, sensory, spiritual, intellectual – and open minds to the understanding and insights that this can bring to our lives. There is so much that music can teach us about being human, about healing division and harmonising the rational and the irrational, the logical and the intuitive.”

Deutsche Grammophon intends to develop three distinct recording series: Barenboim, the Pianist and Conductor, Barenboim the Chamber Music Player and Barenboim, the Educator and Innovator. The latter will take the form of digital-only releases on Daniel Barenboim’s own label, Peral Music, and will be complemented by social media campaigns, a strong YouTube presence and programmes for children’s television. Maestro Barenboim’s YouTube channel has attracted around 40,000 subscribers since its launch in 2016, while his video postings have been viewed almost one million times. He will also reach young television viewers as a character in Max & Maestro, a 52-part cartoon series co-produced by RAI, France Television and ARD-HR, in which he introduces 11-year-old rapper Max to classical music.

Emmanuel Pahud / Kammerakademie Potsdam / Trevor Pinnock C.P.E. BACH Flute Concertos

One of the more puzzling remarks about the music of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach came from Mozart, who said that anyone who listened closely would realize his debt to the German composer. That seemed unlikely, given that Mozart only rarely availed himself of the Sturm und Drang ("storm and stress") style of C.P.E.'s keyboard music. But listen to this release by flutist Emmanuel Pahud and you'll get an idea of what Mozart was talking about. It's not just that the flute concertos are basically galant in style, not Sturm und Drang. It's a certain nervous energy that makes the flute bloom rapidly out of squarish themes and keeps you guessing as to what's coming next. Pahud has previously recorded music by C.P.E. and others in the orbit of the so-called "Flute King," Frederick the Great of Prussia, and he gives this music an immediacy that avoids cuteness, aided by sharp work from the Kammerakademie Potsdam under veteran historical-instrument conductor Trevor Pinnock. Pahud himself uses a modern flute, which works in this case: the athletic, but not showy, quality of C.P.E. Bach's flute writing in the outer movements lends itself well to the modern instrument. Sample the first movement of the Concerto in G major for flute and orchestra, Wq 169, whose writing has some similarities to Mozart's Flute Concerto No. 1 in G major, K. 313. This is a crackling, energetic recording of music that until now hasn't really received its due. (James Manheim)

Arcangelo / Jonathan Cohen BACH Magnificats

Three Magnificats, by the three most famous members of the Bach family, make for a delectable triptych from a 40-year span, with each strikingly promoting their distinctive musical priorities. If Johann Sebastian’s first Leipzig Christmas in 1723 impelled him to display all his high-Baroque wares in a canticle of mesmerising variety, then both his cosmopolitan sons accept the subsequent challenge with alacrity in their colourful settings – with the more substantial CPE score now beginning to enter the canon.

For their father’s perennial masterpiece, Jonathan Cohen and Arcangelo snap into their festive sparklers with grand authority and lithe ebullience, sweeping effortlessly from verse to verse with considerable purpose. There’s something attractively straightforward about ‘Quia fecit’ with the characterful Thomas Bauer agreeably supported by Cohen’s present harpsichord, not least because it has a delicious effect on the languid curves of Iestyn Davies’s and Thomas Walker’s ‘Et misericordia’, which follows. One is struck throughout by the exceptional balance of the voices and instruments yet without forgoing Cohen’s animated and imaginative way with text. Indeed, when one reaches the ‘Gloria Patri’ at the close, the music seems to have evolved imperceptibly in a generous seam of exquisitely judged verses.

Arcangelo’s voyage into the sons’ Magnificats is no less well paced or astutely textured. As we move into Johann Christian’s third setting (thought to be for Milan Cathedral in 1760), the new idiom becomes decidedly operatic, riven with self-conscious conceits and reeking of galant suavity. But it goes down very nicely in around 10 minutes, especially the expectant choral interpolations in ‘Fecit potentiam’ and even the slightly perfunctory doffing of the cap to dad with a decent enough fugue to end.

Carl Philipp Emanuel’s Magnificat is a substantial homage to his father’s setting (there are some obvious quotes), especially in the successful combining of so many contrasting elements. If CPE is rather less succinct than Johann Sebastian, there’s no denying that there are some brilliant and affecting set pieces, especially when carried by Joélle Harvey’s uniformly dramatic and engaging singing – not to mention the supreme final double fugue when the choir and orchestra all but take off. It’s 40 years since King’s College Choir Cambridge under Philip Ledger recorded the work in what seemed a rather muddy and elusive idiom. Not here, where Cohen and Arcangelo bring us an illuminated Bachian constellation of three canticles colliding in captivating relief. (Jonathan Freeman-Attwood / Gramophone)

Lisa Batiashvili BACH

While violinist Lisa Batiashvili has recorded mostly Romantic and modernist music, she has chosen to perform works by J.S. Bach for her third album on Deutsche Grammophon, signaling an expansion of a repertoire that is already quite varied. Even the selections on this 2014 release show a preference for a mix of pieces, with only the Violin Concerto in E major, the solo Violin Sonata in A minor, and the Sinfonia from the cantata Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe to showcase her talents as soloist. The rest of her program features her husband, oboist François Leleux, in the Double Concerto for violin and oboe in C minor, and the aria from the St. Matthew Passion, Erbarme dich, mein Gott, which he plays on oboe d'amore; and the Trio for flute, violin, and continuo in B minor by C.P.E. Bach, with flutist Emmanuel Pahud. Batiashvili generously shares the spotlight with these musicians, and their inclusion gives the whole CD an enjoyable feeling of conversation and flexibility of approach, which a straight run of violin concertos would have lacked. One drawback is the sound of the recording, which is echoic and a little indistinct, due to the resonant acoustics of the venues. Otherwise, this is a vibrant and appealing mainstream presentation of Bach that shows Batiashvili and her colleagues in a positive light. (Blair Sanderson)

For her first Bach recording, Lisa Batiashvili has chosen [a program] to demonstrate her refined musicianship and technical skills in a range of contexts, as well as her good taste. In the concertos' quick movements she offers a sweet, light tone and clearly but gently detailed articulation, using vibrato only when there seems good reason to . . . slow movements are more openly expressive, with Batiashvili at one moment playing out with controlled gorgeousness, the next retreating into rapt and intimate pianissimo. The sonata really shows her at her best, with effortless mastery lending an unusual sense of easeful calm to the music while still contributing towards a fiery Fuga and a delicate and loving Andante. This is fine playing indeed . . . a disc full of classy music-making. (Lindsay Kemp / Gramophone Awards Issue)

Maria Magdalena Kaczor PORTRAITS

Maria Magdalena Kaczor was born in 1980 in Kościan, Poland. Her love of music awakened at the age of seven, and she received initial piano instruction, at first at the music school of her hometown, then later with Hanna Morawska-Bernacka at the music school in Poznań.

In 1995 she was accepted into the piano class of Aleksandra Utrecht at the Mieczysław Karłowicz Music High School in Poznań, where in 1999 she passed her examinations as instrumental soloist with a major in piano and in music education (with emphasis on piano). She additionally studied choral conducting, conducting (in the class of Przemysław Pałka, exams with honors), improvisation, chamber music, and organ.

In 1999 she began her musical studies at the National Academy of Music “Ignacy Paderewski” in Poznań, graduating in 2004 with a master’s degree in piano (in the class of Ewa Jakóbczyk-Kandulska) and in music education (with emphasis on piano). Her thesis, graded cum laude, dealt with the works of twentieth-century composers from Poznań.

As a result of her participation in an interpretation course for organ music in France, she received an invitation to continue her training in Paris. From 2005 she studied with Françoise Dornier at the Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré in Paris (5th Arrondissement), graduating with a diploma in organ from the Conservatoire National de Région in June 2008.
In September 2008 she was unanimously accepted into the organ class of François Espinasse and Liesbeth Schlumberger at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et Danse in Lyon, where she graduated with a Prix d'Orgue cum laude in June 2012.

Pallade Musica SCHIEFERLEIN Sonates en trio

Mélisande McNabney performs keyboard music of all periods, on harpsichord, piano and fortepiano. In August 2015, she received the third prize at the International Competition Musica Antiqua in Bruges, Belgium.

Mélisande has performed hundreds of concerts, whether as a soloist or chamber musician, in Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia in prestigious concert series. Currently based in Montreal, she is regularly invited to play with ensembles such as Les Violons du Roy, Arion Orchestre Baroque, Les Idées heureuses, the Theater of Early Music, and Ensemble Caprice. She is also a member of Pallade Musica and Ensemble Les Songes.

Baroque ensemble Pallade Musica offers a glimpse into the world of Otto Ernst Gregorius Schieferlein, a German Baroque composer.   Among the few works that have been attributed to Schieferlein are a wedding cantata, and the three trio sonatas that are recorded here for the first time. They have survived in an 18th-century manuscript copy from the library of the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. Pallade Musica’s second ATMA recording also includes works by G. P. Telemann and C. P. E. Bach.