Scarlatti 100 Sonatas, Pierre

The astonishing technical variety and wide emotional range contained in Domenico Scarlatti’s keyboard sonatas make each and every encounter a rewarding adventure in which the listener is seldom left untouched. This is Pierre Hantaï’s third solo disc of Scarlatti’s sonatas though only the second in his current series for the Mirare label. It contains several pieces less frequently performed than others and with which many readers may find themselves unfamiliar. The first item, in fact, is one of only seven sonatas of Scarlatti’s that is a straightforward fugue. It is an uncharacteristically didactic piece, even a shade austere compared to the rest of Hantaï’s recital which contains a kaleidoscope of colourful images. What Hantaï seems to be emphasising in his choice is that elusive, somewhat abstracted improvisatory quality present in so many of the pieces and of which the Sonata in E major K 215 provides a well-sustained example. Generally speaking, Hantaï follows Ralph Kirkpatrick’s suggestion that Scarlatti probably intended to group his sonatas into pairs or occasionally threes according to key.

What makes Hantaï so thrilling is his insatiable curiosity for ever newer and bolder effects, a ringmaster's sense for giving an audience more than one show at a time. Topping it all is a bubbling youthful zeal, though zeal doesn't do Hantaï's energy level justice - his variety and his recklessness are amazing, he takes tremendous chances, and hits some unbelieveable speeds. Every possible color of the instrument he uses is toyed with and brought out, sometimes tenderly, but more often with elan, panache, brio, gusto - whatever, Hantaï's loaded with the stuff!

Domenico Scarlatti was born in 1685 - the same year as Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. Only a small fraction of his compositions were published during his lifetime; his 555 keyboard Sonatas were published long after his death. These virtuosic single movement works display remarkable harmonic originality. Pierre Hantaï is recognized as one of the most notable harpsichordists of his generation. The previous five volumes of his dazzling cycle of Scarlatti Sonatas received strong critical acclaim. This long-awaited sixth volume continues to set a new standard for these works.

This collection of 17 Scarlatti harpsichord sonatas isn't systematically compiled, but includes the favorites of harpsichordist and scholar Skip Sempé, and it's a diverse and attractive selection. Citing the strong Spanish influences on Scarlatti's writing, Sempé describes "Duende" as a Spanish term that refers to the mysterious power of an event or activity to move a person into a state of sensory overload, or even transcendence.

A fourth volume of Domenico Scarlatti's Sonatas from the doyen of French harpsichordists, Pierre Hantaï, of whom Gramophone said: "an astonishing display of dexterity in which the harpsichord he uses (a 1999 copy of an anonymous Thuringian instrument of 1720) and the acoustic help in preserving total clarity. Even at maximum velocity (did Scarlatti and his pupil reach such speeds?) he manages to shape his phrases with micro-second dwellings…

La Discotheque Ideale Classique brings together the masterpieces of 47 composers (Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Handel, Ravel, Wagner …) performed by the greatest artists of the prestigious Erato-Warner Classics catalog. The 100 CDs of the box, which contain more than 100 hours of listening, allow you to rediscover the essential works of the classical repertoire.

SEON (Studio Erichson) is a period music label by the legendary producer Wolf Erichson. Erichson founded the label in 1969 as one of the first labels dedicated only to authentic music. The recordings were made with the best available recording techniques of the time and still deliver a high quality product in line with today's standards. This special boxset offers all SEON CD reissues from the late 90s on 85 CDs in a limited edition boxset.