| 1 CD |
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Notify when available |
| Label Signum Classics |
UPC 0635212003428 |
Catalogue number SIGCD 034 |
Release date 01 March 2004 |
J. S. Bach's g minor sonata BWV 1030b is perhaps better known in its later version for flute and harpsichord where it was re-cast in b minor (BWV 1030). For the earlier g minor version only the harpsichord part remains and it is a matter of conjecture which instrument Bach really intended. Of all his flute works Bach's b minor sonata is the most ambitious, and played on the oboe the epic nature of the piece is even more evident.
Whilst being blessed with many wonderful obligato parts in the cantatas, the g minor sonata is the only large scale solo work for oboe players left by Bach.
If BWV 1030 can exist in both oboe and flute versions, why can't other pieces by Bach be similarly versatile? The remainder of the disc includes the often arranged trio sonata for organ, BWV 529 in C major, the flute sonatas BWV 1020, 1031 and 1033 and the harpsichord Prelude and Fugue in c minor BWV 871 from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II.
The authorship of the flute sonata BWV 1033 is called into question because of the style and quality of the basso continuo part. A theory, proposed by musicologist Robert Marshall, is that Bach wrote the flute part as an unaccompanied piece, and that either a son or a student of J. S. Bach added the accompaniment at a later stage. We therefore present the work here as an unaccompanied sonata, echoing the genre that Bach developed with his unaccompanied violin and 'cello sonatas.
Gail Hennessy and Nicholas Parle first played together in London in 1986. They discovered a strong musical rapport and their decision to record these Bach sonatas using oboe and harpsichord stems from their performances over the years of the "big" g minor sonata (BWV 1030b), a challenging work that, like much great music, reveals more and more with each playing.
Veelzijdige en ambitieuze sonates van Bach indrukwekkend uitgevoerd
Johann Sebastian Bachs g mineur sonate (BWV 1030b) is waarschijnlijk het bekendst om zijn latere versie voor fluit en klavecimbel, waarin de toonsoort veranderd is naar b mineur (BWV 1030). Van al zijn fluitwerken is Bachs b mineur sonate de meest ambitieuze en juist doordat het hier op de hobo gespeeld wordt, komt de aard van het stuk zelfs nog duidelijker naar voren.
Als BWV 1030 zowel hobo als fluitversies kan hebben, waarom kunnen andere stukken van Bach dan niet net zo veelzijdig zijn? De rest van het album bevat de vaak gearrangeerde triosonate voor orgel, BWV 529 in C majeur, de fluitsonates BWV 1020, 1031 en 1033 en de klavecimbel Prelude en Fuga in c mineur BWV 871 van Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, Boek II.
Het is echter niet zeker of BWV 1030 wel aan Bach kan worden toegeschreven, vanwege de stijl en kwaliteit van het basso continuo gedeelte. Een theorie, bedacht door musicoloog Robert Marshall, is dat Bach de fluitpartij als een onbegeleid stuk schreef en dat een zoon of een student van Bach de begeleiding er later aan toevoegde. Daarom wordt het werk hier gepresenteerd als een onbegeleide sonate in het genre dat Bach ontwikkelde met zijn onvergezelde viool en cello sonates.
Gail Hennessy en Nicholas Parle speelden voor het eerst samen in Londen in 1986, waar ze een sterke muzikale connectie met elkaar ontdekten. Hun besluit om deze Bach sonates op te nemen door gebruik te maken van de hobo en de klavecimbel komt voort uit hun uitvoeringen over de jaren heen van de ‘grote’ g mineur sonate (BWV 1030b). Een uitdagend werk dat, zoals bij veel grootse muziek, steeds meer onthult bij elke keer dat het gespeeld wordt.
Oboist Gail Hennessy was born in Wisconsin in the USA, and studied modern oboe at the University of Louisville before taking up a position as cor anglais player in North Carolina. During her time there she encountered a baroque oboe for the first time, and fell in love with its sound. This, together with her empathy for baroque music, led her to study Historical Performance Practice at Washington University, and ultimately drew her to Britain. She was an apprentice to baroque oboe-maker Mary Kirkpatrick in Oxfordshire, and studied baroque oboe with the late David Reichenberg through the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
She now plays and records with many of Britain's early music groups, including The Academy of Ancient Music, La Serenissima, The Parley of Instruments, St. James's Baroque, Fiori Musicali and Ex Cathedra, and also performs as a soloist and chamber musician. She encourages composers to write new music for old instruments, and has premiered works by Jennifer Fowler (1988), Roderick Williams (2004), Rhian Samuel (2008), Peter McCarthy (2011) and Thea Musgrave (2011). She teaches at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the Royal College of Music, Birmingham Conservatoire, and Cambridge Early Music Summer School. Her recordings of Bach sonatas and Vivaldi chamber music are available on the Signum label.
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth.
Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.
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