Harpsichord Trios

Joseph Boismortier (1689-1755) may be well represented on disc but it’s fair to say that his name rarely sets the pulse truly racing. In fact, although on the face of it he shares a huge amount in common with his German contemporary Georg Philipp Telemann, it’s hard to picture a world in which a Boismortier anniversary would be celebrated with as much enthusiasm as Telemann’s 250th is currently being.

Sergio Azzolini offers us a magnificent new recording, with Mozart's only bassoon concerto (considered one of his best all-instrument concertos) and a world premiere, the reconstructed serenade of Michael Haydn in a new reference recording.

The Graun brothers, both of whom held leading positions in the Berlin royal ensemble, were regarded as ‘fiery instrumental composers’ and numbered among the most famous musicians of their time. The elegant gestures, the sensitive tone, and the colloquial interaction of the musicians are remarkable, and the decision to employ a fortepiano instead of a harpsichord as the continuo instrument underscores the progressive element in these compositions.

Paul Dombrecht, Wieland Kuijken en Robert Kohnen zijn sinds jaar en dag klinkende namen op de internationale barokpodia. Zij behoren tot de internationale top op het gebied van oude muziek en verwierven een ijzersterke faam als solist, artistiek leider of musicus in diverse ensembles. Hun pionierswerk van weleer was en is de vruchtbare bodem voor de internationale weerklank van de oude muziek. Samen koesteren ze een warme symathie voor de schier onuitputtelijke muziek van Georg Philipp Telemann.

In October 1774, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach sent Johann Nikolaus Forkel, who was slowly gathering material for a biography of J. S. Bach, a parcel of his father's music. It contained eleven "Trii," some organ pieces with a pedal part, the variations on "Vom Himmel hoch" and a covering note. "The six Clavier trios—[violin sonatas, but notice Emanuel's choice of words]—are among my departed father's best works. They still sound splendid and give me much pleasure, although they were written more than fifty years ago. Some of their slow movements ("Adagii") could not be set more lyrically even today. I beg you, as the scores are very tattered, to take good care of them.” The other five "trios" were presumably the two for flute in B minor and A major (BWV 1030) The word "trio" was a normal eighteenth century description for a three-voice piece with the second melody line taken by the keyboard right hand—“violin sonata" would imply a solo violin with harpsichord continuo.