Anna Besson

In 1700, Corelli published his 12 violin sonatas, Opus 5, in Rome. A veritable revolution in violin technique, they won the admiration of eminent composers (Bach, Dandrieu, Couperin) and greatly influenced the French (Francoeur, Leclair, Senaillé, Quentin), who were to try their hand at this virtuoso and brilliant Italian style. At the end of the 1730s, the first six sonatas of opus 5 were "adapted to the transverse flute with the bass" by a Parisian publisher. The level of virtuosity they demanded was quite innovative at the time. This display of virtuosity is also to be found in the compositions of Jean-Baptiste Quentin, known as Le Jeune. We have very little biographical information on Quentin himself, but all his work is greatly inspired by Italian music and is heavily influenced by Corelli. Anna Besson has made the world's first recording of his sonatas, with the help of two other eminent performers of the new Baroque generation, Myriam Rignol on viola da gamba and Jean Rondeau on harpsichord.

The Dubhlinn Gardens: an evening in the high society of 18th century Dublin, where traditional music was ‘civilising’ itself for the salon… This programme was inspired by the passion for traditional Irish music that flautist Anna Besson has felt since she was a child. Surprising as it may seem, it was playing the Irish flute that led her to study the baroque instrument… For the past few years Reinoud Van Mechelen too has begun to train himself in the traditional Irish song with Karan Casey and other singers who have specialised in the unaccompanied Sean-nós. This twofold practice of early as well as traditional music has led the ensemble A Nocte Temporis to offer a programme that is both vivacious and extremely touching.

A pupil of Mozart, Johann Nepomuk Hummel was one of the most admired pianists of his era. His career began in Vienna at the time when Beethoven had just moved there. Like the latter, he belonged to that generation of composers whose output may be categorised somewhere between Classicism and burgeoning Romanticism. In addition to an extensive catalogue of original compositions, including piano works of high quality, Hummel also made numerous arrangements for chamber forces of orchestral compositions. Among these were the piano concertos of his teacher Mozart and the symphonies of his friend Beethoven, all of which he transcribed for piano, flute, violin and cello. The Romanian pianist Aurelia Visovan offers this particularly original programme for her album as winner of the 2019 Bruges MA Festival competition.

For their third album on Alpha, the musicians of Nevermind – Anna Besson (flute), Louis Creac’h (viola), Robin Pharo (viola da gamba) and Jean Rondeau (harpsichord) – explore the riches of a little-played repertory, the quartets and sonatas of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach.