Tomaso ALBINONI (1671 - 1751)
Six Sonatas for Flute and Continuo Op. 6
Sonata in D, op. 6,7 [11:36]
Sonata in e minor, op. 6,8 [10:08]
Sonata in C, op. 6,1 [11:09]
Sonata in g minor, op. 6,2 [11:53]
Sonata in a minor, op. 6,6 [11:13]
Sonata in G, op. 6,9 [10:43]
Ensemble Barocco Padovano Sans Souci (Mario Folena (transverse flute), Carlo Zanardi (cello), Terrell Stone (theorbo, guitar), Aldo Fiorentin (harpsichord))
rec. 24 - 25 April, 1 May 1995, Chiesa della Natività della B.V. Maria ai Servi, Padua, Italy. DDD
DYNAMIC DM8032 [65:11]
Tomaso Albinoni was one of the most respected composers of his time, despite
being not a professional composer but rather a dilettante, as he called
himself. The largest part of his oeuvre consists of music for the theatre.
Unfortunately almost none of his compositions in this genre has been preserved
complete. Most of his operas are lost; of others only a few arias have come
down to us.
Therefore today he is mainly known for his instrumental music. His concertos
with parts for one or two oboes are quite popular and are regularly played
at concerts and recorded. He also wrote a considerable number of sonatas for
one or two violins and bc. Several of his collections of sonatas have been
recorded. One of these comprises twelve for violin and basso continuo which
were printed as his op. 6 in Amsterdam around 1712. The title is Trattenimenti
armonici per camera. The word trattenimento means 'entertainment'
and indicates that these sonatas were intended for the growing market of amateur
performers. The addition da camera suggests that these sonatas follow
the model of the Corellian sonata da camera. It may then come as a
surprise that the movements bear not the titles of dances, as was common in
sonate da camera, but rather indications such as adagio or allegro
as was usual in the sonata da chiesa. However, these are dances in
disguise: many fast movements are in fact allemandes, courantes or gigues.
The title of this disc suggests that we have here six flute sonatas, but that
is not quite correct. Albinoni didn't give any indication that his sonatas
could be played on the transverse flute. That doesn't mean that he didn't
approve of adapting these sonatas for other instruments. This was common practice
and composers expected performers to adapt their sonatas for their own use,
depending on the instruments that were at hand. In his liner-notes Mario Folena
mentions that several sets of such adaptations are known from Albinoni's time.
In this recording he didn't make use of any of these editions. Rather he constructed
his own arrangements. Such arrangements sometimes require transpositions to
another key. In this recording all but one sonata are played in the original
keys. The exception is the Sonata No. 2 which is in G minor, but originally
in D major. I am a bit surprised by that, since there was apparently no need
to transpose the Sonata No. 7 which is also in D major.
Obviously some of the effects Albinoni included in his sonatas are lost in
these arrangements. That particularly concerns Albinoni's use of double-stopping.
That is, for instance, the case in the fast movements from the Sonata No.
9. In his liner-notes to The Locatelli Trio's recording of the complete
set (Hyperion, 1992) Michael Talbot writes about the Sonata No. 8:
"[The] rasping violin chords in its second movement convey a mood of desperate
urgency." That can't be conveyed in a performance with transverse flute. The
passages of a contrapuntal character remain fully intact, though.
However, in these new clothes, as it were, these sonatas make a very good
impression as well. Some of the features of the original scoring may have
gone lost, the natural sensitivity and differentiation in colour and dynamics
of the transverse flute fit them very well. Mario Folena is an excellent performer
who plays with intelligence and stylistic awareness. He is supported by a
strong basso continuo group which shows a good sense of the rhythmic pulse
of these sonatas. The first allegro from the Sonata No. 6 is a particularly
good example.
Even if you have a performance with violin in your collection, for instance
the recording by The Locatelli Trio, this disc has much to offer and will
give you a new and different look at these beautiful sonatas.
Johan van Veen
http://www.musica-dei-donum.org
https://twitter.com/johanvanveen
A new and different look at these beautiful sonatas originally composed for
violin.
|
Support us financially
by purchasing this disc from
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |