Haydn Jacobs

Given the vaunted status of and incessant competitiveness among qualified musicians for the first section chairs of major symphony orchestras, perhaps it should not come as too much of a surprise that a first-chair soloist is often as skilled in transmitting concerto literature as a "star" recitalist. But producers of classical recordings have not often elected to showcase the talents of first-chair performers, certainly not to the extent that a listener would commonly encounter them in the concert hall.

Sigiswald Kuijken was born in 1944 close to Brussels. He studied violin at the conservatories of Bruges and Brussels, completing his studies at the latter institution with Maurice Raskin in 1964. He came into contact with early music at a very young age, together with his brother Wieland. Studying on his own, he gained a thorough knowledge of specific 17th- and 18th-century performance techniques and conventions of interpretation on violin and viola da gamba This led to the introduction, in 1969, of a more authentic way of playing the violin, whereby the instrument was no longer held under the chin, but lay freely on the shoulder; this was to have a crucial influence on the approach to the violin repertoire and was consequently adopted by many players starting in the early 1970s.

Counter-tenor Franco Fagioli makes his Pentatone debut with Anime Immortali, together with the Kammerorchester Basel, exploring the music that Mozart composed for castratos. Ranging from opera to sacred music and culminating in Exsultate, jubilate, the recorded works share a sublime and profound character, demonstrating Mozart’s strong connection to the castrato voice. With this album, Fagioli finally returns to the composer that inflamed his desire to become a musician during his youth.

Orquestra Was - Forever's A Long, Long Time
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 333 MB | Full Artwork: 56 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Verve # 533 915-2 | Country/Year: Europe 1997
Genre: Electronica, Jazz | Style: Big Band, Contemporary Jazz

"…It's an absorbing journey, and one which, avoiding as it does the mainstreams of jazz, country, rock 'n' soul, could easily slip between the cracks of generic taste. But ultimately, it's only through exercises like this that those genres are broadened and enriched, and at present, all four could do with a little of that." ~the independent