Arcangelo Corelli's legacy is immense, and even he knew it. The instrumental sonata in a few structurally coherent movements, as it exists today, is essentially his invention. The legacy under consideration on this Belgian release is narrower: after one sonata by Corelli himself, you hear works by his students and followers, many of whom played major roles in the musical life of England in the early 18th century. The most famous of these was Francesco Geminiani, who gets a lot of ink in the booklet (in English, French, German, and Italian) but is oddly not represented in the program. Instead there's music by a host of lesser lights, much of it known only to scholars; the sonatas by Giovanni Carbonelli, Giovanni Mossi, and Pietro Castrucci, as well as an unaccompanied gigue by Antonio Montanari, are world-premiere recordings. The Violin Sonata, Op. 8/10, of Pietro Locatelli effectively integrates showpiece virtuosity with clean structural lines, but the rest of the music tends to pick up on one aspect or another of Corelli's music -- harmonic sequences, technical challenges, or the ornament-encrusted melody of Corelli's slow movements -- and imitate it. The peformances by the Musica Antiqua Roma historical-instrument ensemble are of the heavily accented, highly dramatic sort that has become common in Italy, with a three-person continuo (keyboard, cello,and triple harp) imparting plenty of rhythmic drive and rasp. The average buyer may be satisfied with music by Corelli and the other major figures of the Italian and British scenes (Veracini is one to try if you're interested in exploring), but this will be of interest to serious fans of the High Baroque sonata.

-- All Music Guide

ABEL Symphonies: in B?; in E?. Overtures: in C op 5/2 ; in G; in D; in C, op1/2 • Paul Dombrecht, cond; Il Fondamento (period instruments) • PASSACAILLE 903 (60: 33)


Carl Friedrich Abel (1723–87) is one of those composers who had an excellent reputation during his lifetime, achieved not only as a soloist on the viola da gamba but as an impresario of a public concert series in London along with his partner Johann Christian Bach and as a composer of solid, well-crafted compositions. Among these are some 40 or 50 symphonies, most of which were written both for publication and for performance at his own concerts. This group seems to have been chosen by conductor Paul Dombrecht for the disc, I would venture to say, based upon the works that appealed to him. Although the terms “overture” and “symphony” are used, in reality there is no difference whatsoever between the six pieces; all are in three movements conforming to the popular Italian model, and all were published during Abel’s lifetime. He seems to use the same formula for each work, two fast movements flanking a slow lyrical Andante. All movements are about the same length, averaging four minutes, although four of the works have a final movement that hovers about two minutes, sort of a fast-paced dessert.


Despite all of the similarities, these symphonies are not simply formulaic. Abel knows the popularity of the various mannerisms derived from the famed Mannheim orchestra—the sighs, the layered crescendos, the tremolo strings, and the rocketing split triads—but his use of them is quite varied. In the E?-Symphony, for instance, the theme takes a bit to start moving, in effect suspending time for a few moments, like a breath. In the first C-Major work, the first movement is in a ritornello style, vigorous and decisive, with the third rounding off the work in a peasant’s dance. The third movement of the G Major seems to have been inspired by a hunt, while the B?-Symphony’s first movement is a serious statement, very Sturm und Drang , again with a quasi-hunt to keep the mood a bit lighter. The D Major could have been written by Joseph Haydn, with its monothematic development and good cohesive structure. These show both Abel’s ability to write with talent and craftsmanship, as well as his awareness of what was popular at the time.


The recording itself is a bit dated, although the performance is fine, as these things go. It was done in 1994, about the same time as the crop of other available Abel symphonies recordings, including Anthony Halstead and the Hannover Band on cpo, Adrian Shepherd’s Cantilena on Chandos, and Michael Schneider with La Stagione on cpo as well. The difference is that all of these seem to focus on the usual six-work printed collections: Schneider on the op. 10, Halstead on the op. 17, and Shepherd on the op. 7. In this, Dombrecht chooses a more eclectic sampling; only the B?-Major work has been recorded before. The performances here have a good sense of phrasing and tempos, and the playing, particularly by the strings, is fairly secure. My only peeve is that there seems to be an inordinately long space between movements and works at times, but then I may be expecting less space. The horns can sound a bit forceful at moments, and I found the overall sound a touch hollow, perhaps even somewhat muffled. If you are collecting Abel, this recording will complement the other three, and you probably should include it, as it is fully up to the standards of the other three. Personally, I would love to see a more modern recording of a group doing the entire corpus of Abel symphonies in a series.


FANFARE: Bertil van Boer

In the present Passacaille recording, Hana Blazikova combines her angelic soprano with the supernaturally beautiful sound of the zinc. Her duo partner is one of the most renowned zinc-players of our time: Bruce Dickey. The selected pieces of Tarquinio Merula, Alessandro Scarlatti, Maurizio Cazzati and others are characterized by an irrepressible joy and downright stunning vocal and instrumental virtuosity. An interesting addition on this release is a specially composed piece from Greek composer Calliope Tsoupaki, Melena iml.

Today, the five-string cello is treated as an exotic and rarely-played cousin of the standard cello. However, in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries it was simply one of the many instruments used in the family of bass violins, and was particularly important for virtuosic sonatas and solos.

The royal courts of mid-eighteenth century Berlin were lively crossroads for some of the greatest musicians of the time. Court musicians and visitors were famous virtuosos performing music full of expressivity and fantasy. In Berlin Sonatas, the sonatas of J.C.F. Bach, C.P.E. Bach, C.F. Abel, Johann Kirnberger, and C.H. Graun each demonstrate the language of Sensibility (Empfindsamkeit): an expression of sadness, anger, wrath, joy, love, and praise. In their music, emotions are fleeting and instantaneous and, above all, the beauty of melody is emphasized. In Berlin in particular (where several court musicians were students of J.S. Bach), sonatas for cello seem liberated, natural, and comprehensible when played on a instrument fit with a fifth string. The five-string cello also allows for the performance of violin caprices by Franz Benda. The works of Berlin Sonatas achieve a great quality of expression of the kind that helped make Berlin composers famous, especially for their rapturous Adagios and tuneful Allegros, each leaving ample space for the performer’s creativity. Elinor Frey, five-string cello and Lorenzo Ghielmi, fortepiano or harpsichord - Passacaille

Beethoven, while one of the most prolific composers that has ever lived, has not received as much acclaim for his smaller, chamber works. This album contains three of the great composer’s lesser known works: Octet in E-Flat Major, Op. 103, Rondino in E-Flat Major, WoO 25, and Quintet in E-Flat Major, Op. 16. The pieces are performed here by ensemble Il Gardellino, and pianist Arthur Schoonderwoerd.

Classical Music

Certainly, the Toccata and Fugue BWV 565 is the most famous organ piece at all - but is it actually by Bach? + And: Is it even an original organ piece? + This recording by renowned virtuoso baroque violinist Enrico Onofri tries to reconstruct the putative original version for violin and come to a convincing result. + It also seemed that there was a version of Tartini’s op. 1/10 for solo violin, which the violinist restored too. + Besides the two reconstructions, Mr. Onofri composed two original works for solo violin that underline his rank as one of today’s leading baroque violinists.

Many scholarly questions still surround Bachs late work, the Musicalische Opfer (Musical Offering), but about the music's staggering brilliance there is no question. On this CD, the ensemble Il Gardellino combines this ornate contrapuntal masterpiece with the similarly late and intricate Einige canonische Veranderung uber das Weynacht-Lied, BWV 769, in many ways a perfect compliment to the Musicalische Opfer, for which they've created this chamber music version especially for this recording. - Naxos

Noted harpsichordist, teacher and scholar, Martha Cook performs "The Art of the Fugue" by Johann Sebastian Bach.

La Divina Armonia, under the direction of Lorenzo Ghielmi impressively demonstrates that they can add new tunes to well-known standard repertoire. This album showcases interpretative taste, superior technology and exceptional natural musicality. These musicians prove that they have all of this in abundance with their recording of three Bach concertos.

Classical Music

From the budding blossoms of first love and the heat of passion, to when feelings subside and fade away, “the seasons of love” are the overarching theme of this program of madrigali concertati by three notable members of the Venetian school: Biagio Marini, Giovanni Rovetta and Giovanni Valentini. The madrigals on this recording exemplify the new musical aesthetic of affetti and the seasons of nature are mirrored by the stages of love experienced by the lyrical hero. The ever-changing vocal and instrumental forces of up to six singers and seven instrumentalists lend colorful variety to the recording as it progresses from primavera, estate, autunno and inverno through the seasons of love. As a prelude to the “seasons of love”, ensemble member and soprano Hana Blažíková sings Marini’s doleful lament Le Lagrime d’Erminia. Since its inaugural concert of continuo anthems by Purcell in 2013, under artistic director Fritz Krämer the professional ensemble Bernvocal has become a fixture in the Swiss early music scene and beyond thanks to its performances of Renaissance and Baroque vocal repertoire.

I Solisti release their second album with works by their composer-in-residence Frederik Neyrinck (*1985). Like no other composer, he has mastered the art of writing brilliant and innovative music that makes the most of the wind ensemble's wealth of timbres. Concert versions of two music theater pieces can be heard, among others. I SOLISTI gives classical music a creative twist. The ensemble started 30 years ago as a traditional wind octet and grew under the inspiring leadership of artistic director and founding father Francis Pollet into an all round music ensemble with international recognition. I SOLISTI gives opportunities to young talented artists and produces adventurous programs of opera and music theater.

Il violoncello di Corelli leads us to the origins of the solo cello literature – although one should actually use the term violone. In fact, the cello, as we know it today in its standard form, had many different sizes before its current proportions became generally established. Some instruments were larger, and the smaller ones were referred to by the diminutive form of the term violone – hence the word violoncello. And one of these early ‘bigger brothers’ is the main protagonist of this recording: the instrument played by Alessandro Palmeri was built by Simone Cimapane in Rome in 1685. It is a rare testimony to the original size of the violone. It is furthermore a unique instrument because it was used in ensembles in Rome in which Corelli himself played. Alessandro Palmeri presents a compilation of works from the early solo literature for cello by composers such as Domenico Gabrielli, Giuseppe Pietro Gaetano Boni, Giuseppe Colombi and Giovanni Battista Vitali. The extraordinarily prolific period, both artistically and musically, which prevailed in Emilia Romagna throughout the 17th century, provided the conditions for the creation and development of the cello literature. The works on this recording mark the transition from the epoch of the violone to the epoch of the violoncello. With them, the cello was ultimately freed from the continuo role to which it had previously been limited.

During the height of its popularity, from the mid-16th century into the 18th, the cornetto was frequently depicted in art as an instrument of angels. Paintings, sculptures, and engravings abound in which the cornetto takes a prominent place among choirs of angelic musicians, usually paired with at least one voice and with other instruments such as the organ, viol, lute, harp, violin and trombone. For this project Bruce Dickey and Hana Blažíková take the image of angel musicians as a point of departure for an aural journey ranging from 1600 to the present day. From sacred monodies and motets of the early 1600s to opera arias from the end of the century, via a brief diversion to Erik Satie, we arrive at two specially commissioned contemporary works, all the while focusing on the angelic and radiant pairing of the cornetto with the human voice.