Francesco Aquila

Polyphonic 14th-century Italian secular music seems to emerge out of nowhere in the history of music. Nevertheless, this tradition – which often goes by the name Ars Nova – fits seamlessly into the history of Italian culture. Our knowledge of it has been pieced together from relatively few sources, which nevertheless reveal three distinct phases. In its first phase, Italian Ars Nova spread out from universities, including those of Padua and Bologna, which had strong links with the dominant and contemporaneous French Ars Nova. In the second phase, the centre of 14th-century Italian polyphony seems to shift markedly to Florence. The final phase, which bridged the late 1300s and early 1400s, shows the influence of intense cultural exchange brought about by an international circulation of musicians and poets caused by the political instability of the papacy’s return from Avignon to Rome and the consequent heightened mobility among the various courts and their entourages.

Massimo Lonardi avait bien enregistré un album assez réussi, consacré lui aussi à la fois à Milano et Borrono, mais cet album de Paolo Cherici, de toute facon plus disponible, est la meilleure facon de découvrir Pietro Paolo Borrono, un des compositeurs majeurs du XVIe siècle italien, particulièrement réputé pour ses danses, et un des plus oubliés au disque (même s'il est régulièrement cité dans les anthologies via une ou deux pièces) maintenant que presque tous les autres grands luthistes, hormis Dalza (même si le même Paolo Cherici a enregistré un très bon album Dalza - Spinacino chez Pan classics), ont eu droit à leur disque dédié: Spinacino, Dall'Aquila, Capirola, Alberto da Ripa… et bien sûr Milano dont la discographie est maintenant riche.

Stefano Bigoni studied piano with Gioiella Giannoni and Vincenzo Audino and achieved his diploma at the Conservatorio "G. Puccini" in La Spezia with full marks. He completed his musical education graduating in composition and instrumentation for bands at the Conservatorio "A. Casella" in L'Aquila with Maestro Piero Luigi Zangelmi.

This fascinating set provides a refreshing window onto a much studied, much idolized, and oft performed master of composition, allowing many of his familiar works to appear in a new light, recognizable and yet transformed. Bach's music is often described as indestructible, in the sense that no matter how it is performed, or in whichever arrangement, it's essential spirit survives. Many of the transcriptions included here represent the work of contemporary, world-class performers bringing Bach's masterpieces into the repertoire of their own instruments or ensembles, thereby giving new timbres to the genius of Bach's contrapuntal lines.