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Avie Records

Bach: Sonatas For Viola Da Gamba / Manson, Pinnock

$19.99 Only 2 left

Details

Composer
BACH, J.S.
Artist
Pinnock, Manson
Format
CD
Label
Avie Records
Released
May 01, 2006
Catalog #
AV2093
UPC
822252209327

About

Bach’s three Sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord were once thought to belong to the composer’s Cöthen period. His employer, prince Leopold, was an enthusiastic amateur gambist and the court orchestra boasted a performer of exceptional talent in Christian Ferdinand Abel. Yet it seems more likely that the pieces were written at Leipzig, possibly for Abel’s son Carl Friedrich who lived there for several years and who may even have been a Bach pupil. In all three Sonatas the gamba is partnered by an obbligato harpsichord, Bach placing the gamba line between the treble and bass keyboard strands to provide a distinct voice in the alto-tenor range. Bach always wrote expressively for this eloquent member of the viol family, above all in the wonderful G minor Sonata whose outer movements adhere to the ritornello principles of a Vivaldian concerto. Jonathan Manson and Trevor Pinnock form a hugely rewarding partnership. Both are spirited players with strong characters but who, yet, are susceptible to the sublime poetry of the Sonata’s centrally placed Adagio. There is much rewarding dialogue in these performances where neither player steals the limelight from the other. The conversational interplay between the instruments is animated and engaging and the rapport between the artists hardly can be placed in doubt. In short, I find greater athleticism and a greater sense of playful spontaneity here than in rival versions either by Jordi Savall and Ton Koopman for instance (Alia Vox) or Jaap Ter Linden and Richard Egarr (Harmonia Mundi). The fourth Sonata in their programme is a transcription of a piece best known in its B minor version for flute and harpsichord but which, in turn, derives from a partly preserved source in G minor. Performance: 5 (out of 5), Sound: 5 (out of 5)

-- Nicholas Anderson, BBC Music Magazine

Tracklist 14 tracks

  1. 1 I. Vivace 05:15
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Vivace
    Duration
    05:15
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  2. 2 II. Adagio 05:37
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Adagio
    Duration
    05:37
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  3. 3 III. Allegro 03:37
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Allegro
    Duration
    03:37
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  4. 4 I. Adagio 03:47
    Track
    4
    Title
    I. Adagio
    Duration
    03:47
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  5. 5 II. Allegro ma non tanto 03:31
    Track
    5
    Title
    II. Allegro ma non tanto
    Duration
    03:31
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  6. 6 III. Andante 02:42
    Track
    6
    Title
    III. Andante
    Duration
    02:42
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  7. 7 IV. Allegro moderato 03:02
    Track
    7
    Title
    IV. Allegro moderato
    Duration
    03:02
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  8. 8 I. Adagio 01:52
    Track
    8
    Title
    I. Adagio
    Duration
    01:52
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  9. 9 II. Allegro 03:40
    Track
    9
    Title
    II. Allegro
    Duration
    03:40
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  10. 10 III. Andante 04:08
    Track
    10
    Title
    III. Andante
    Duration
    04:08
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  11. 11 IV. Allegro 03:55
    Track
    11
    Title
    IV. Allegro
    Duration
    03:55
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  12. 12 I. Andante 08:28
    Track
    12
    Title
    I. Andante
    Duration
    08:28
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  13. 13 II. Siciliano 03:48
    Track
    13
    Title
    II. Siciliano
    Duration
    03:48
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach
  14. 14 III. Presto 05:40
    Track
    14
    Title
    III. Presto
    Duration
    05:40
    Composer
    Johann Sebastian Bach