Georg Philipp TELEMANN (1681-1767)
The Saxon Alternative - Music for Wind Band
Overture in F (TWV 44,7) [12:04]
Overture in c minor (TWV 55,c3) [12:49]
Concerto a 5 in D (TWV 44,2) [7:53]
Overture in B flat (TWV 55,B3) [17:02]
Overture in F (TWV 44,14) [12:12]
Syrinx (Belinda Paul, Ann Allen (oboe, oboe d'amore), Hanna Geisel
(taille), Anneke Scott, Kate Goldsmith (natural horn), Sally Holman, Inga
Maria Klaucke (bassoon), Dan Tidhar (harpsichord))
rec. 2014, St Mary's Church, Stoke by Nayland, UK DDD
RESONUS RES10154 [62:04]
Wind instruments played a major part in renaissance and
baroque Europe. Many towns had their own ensembles of wind players, such as
the city waits in England and the Stadtpfeifer in Germany.
They participated in ceremonies of the town and played in the homes of the
social elite. In the 17th century France was a trendsetter in many ways, and
that includes the development and increasing role of wind instruments. The
emergence of the oboe in particular was a key moment in music history. Louis
XIV employed a group of twelve oboists, called Les Douze Grands Hautbois.
As everything French exerted a strong attraction on royalty and aristocracy
across Europe oboes - mostly alongside bassoons - appeared in court chapels
outside France. The present disc documents their dissemination across Germany
on the basis of compositions by Georg Philipp Telemann. He was greatly interested
in the French style and comes as no surprise that he included oboe parts in
many of his compositions.
The orchestral overture - itself a token of the influence of the French taste
- was usually scored for two oboes, bassoon, strings and bc. In Telemann's
oeuvre one can find many of such overtures, but also in the output of other
composers, such as Johann Friedrich Fasch. However, this disc focuses on compositions
for wind instruments and basso continuo, without the participation of strings.
Such pieces constituted the repertoire of ensembles of oboists, usually referred
to as Hautboisten. Not only original pieces were written for such
ensembles, they also played music for other ensembles, including strings,
which was arranged for wind instruments, in particular bands of oboes and
bassoons.
The history of wind ensembles doesn't stop there. Whereas the oboe
and the bassoon had their roots in France, the horn was very much a German/Austrian
addition to the wind band. Its history goes back to the Middle Ages, but technical
changes in the early decades of the 18th century allowed it to play an increasingly
important role at the courts of kings and aristocrats. From ancient times
the horn was associated with the hunt, and in the 18th century it was naturally
associated with the courts of kings and aristocrats given that hunting was
one of their main preoccupations. Dresden was an important centre of horn
playing and the court chapel had several virtuosic horn players in its ranks.
The title of this disc refers to a specific kind of wind ensemble: a band
of oboes and horns. In her liner-notes Belinda Paul states that The Saxon
Alternative "formed the basis of the modern orchestral wind section".
In the classical period it would develop into the Harmonie which
inspired composers to some of their finest works, including Mozart.
The booklet includes notes on the various pieces in the programme. However,
it doesn't touch some issues in regard to scoring. The Overture
in F (TWV 44,7), for instance, has been found in the library of the court
in Darmstadt where Telemann's colleague and friend Christoph Graupner
was Kapellmeister for many years. He copied many of Telemann's
works and a large number of the latter's orchestral overtures are only
preserved thanks to his copying efforts. It is played here with two oboes,
two horns, two bassoons and harpsichord. However, the original title is Ouverture
à 5/corne de chasse/violini/con/cembalo. The liner-notes don't
explain why oboes replaced the violins.
The Overture in c minor (TWV 55,c3) was originally written as a partita
for a solo instrument and basso continuo, as part of a collection of six partitas
published in Frankfurt in 1716 as Kleine Cammer-Music. It was later
arranged by the composer for a larger ensemble. The original title of this
overture is Ouverture à dessus, haute contre, taille e cembalo. The
terms dessus, haute contre and taille seem to refer to the
string instruments in the French opera orchestra. In the Telemann work catalogue
it is included as a piece for strings and bc. What is the reason for performing
it here with two oboes, taille (here referring to a tenor oboe), two bassoons
and harpsichord? Michael Schneider, in the liner-notes to the recording of
the orchestral versions of the Partitas (La Stagione Frankfurt; CPO, 2004),
also fails to refer to a version for wind instruments alone. The Overture
in B flat (TWV 55,B3) is also catalogued as a piece for strings and bc,
but the autograph doesn't indicate any instruments.
It is perfectly possible that these pieces exist in different versions, and
that Telemann - for instance - has written them first for wind and then reworked
them for strings, after all the most common scoring, or the other way round.
However, I feel that such information should be shared with the listeners.
If the performers claim that the music they have recorded is a demonstration
of the importance of the wind band in Germany they should more clearly document
their sources.
All those considerations apart, this is a fine disc. Although now and then
I found the playing a little too restrained the glory of the baroque wind
instruments is amply demonstrated here. To that one can add that Telemann's
music never fails to entertain and impress with its variety and originality.
There is really no dull moment here. It would be interesting if this ensemble
- or others - would continue to explore this relatively unfamiliar part of
German baroque repertoire.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
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