Prussian Blue
CPE Bach Sonatas for flute, viola da gamba and harpsichord
Prussian Blue is Passacaglia’s exploration of early sonatas (1737-1747) by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. In this period Emanuel moved from his student haunt of Frankfurt to the court of Frederick the Great in Berlin, and the turbulent and impassioned music he wrote seems to be a conscious rejection of the baroque style that had come before. The chiaroscuro contrasts and wild harmonic leaps seems to foreshadow music that would be written 50 years later; and yet there’s also exquisite galant refinement and balance.
‘This is a thoroughly enjoyable CD, with all three members of Passacaglia demonstrating their individual musicality and technical prowess, as well as coming together with an admirably impressive sense of ensemble.’
EARLY MUSIC REVIEW
Vivaldi Undercover
Transcriptions and arrangements of Vivaldi by J S Bach, Chédeville and Passacaglia
Vivaldi as you’ve never heard him before! 300 years ago, Vivaldi’s music was so popular and influential that other composers right across Europe copied it, studied it, rearranged it…. and some even faked it. Includes Chedeville’s reworkings of Spring and Autumn from The Four Seasons (with hurdy-gurdy virtuoso Tobie Miller), along with new arrangements of Bach organ concertos and Vivaldi’s La Follia.
‘…wonderfully passionate and detailed playing… in the hands of the wonderfully virtuosic Annabel Knight and Louise Bradbury the playing is never less than superbly accomplished…’
EARLY MUSIC REVIEW
Telemann: Time: Travel
Telemann:Time:Travel presents seven brilliant trio-format chamber works by Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1757) for recorder, transverse flute, voice flute, viola da gamba and harpsichord. The instruments combine in countless ways, with gamba and harpsichord sometimes taking exciting solo roles. Includes works from Telemann’s collections Essercizii Musici, Sonate Metodiche and Six Concerts et Six Suites.
‘The best historically informed performances and recordings recreate the spirit as well as the sound of the music and, in ‘Telemann:Time:Travel’, the now well-established group Passacaglia do just that, combining the two to make a performance of irrepressible joy. … Annabel Knight’s phosphorescent top line teases out Telemann’s rhythmic and melodic jokes, idiosyncrasies and brainteasers with such effortless energy…’
GRAMOPHONE
‘A beautifully rendered account of Telemann’s inspired compositions for flute and recorder… Knight plays superbly, always with a keen ear for expression and line, never allowing virtuosic writing to obscure her nuanced interpretation. Throughout she is sensitively and expertly partnered by Ichise and Bigwood, the trio blending clarity with warmth of tone. Scholarly and illuminating booklet notes accompany this thoughtfully programmed and elegant offering.’
EARLY MUSIC TODAY
Dornel: La Triomphante
Antoine Dornel’s imaginative and dynamic compositional style was perfectly suited to the lively and ever-changing musical environment of Paris in the first decades of the eighteenth century. The few works that survive testify to a seemingly talented and inventive composer eager to try the latest musical fashions, as exemplified by the opening work on this recording, the magnificent Sonate en Quatuor. This harmonically adventurous and dramatic work, especially in the first movement which alternates sections of slow, expressive writing with virtuosic, Italianate outbursts, was quite probably Cornel’s first experiment with the title and genre ‘sonata’.
‘Passacaglia shows… imagination and zest. … a very exciting performance’
MUSIC WEB INTERNATIONAL
Boismortier Suites & Sonatas
Witty, elegant and sophisticated music from this hugely under-rated composer, beautifully exploiting the varied colours of flute, recorder, gamba, harpsichord, chamber-organ, guitar and theorbo.
‘I fell in love with this disc at first hearing, seduced by Passacaglia’s senusous mix of recorders, gamba, chamber organ and harpsichord. There are so many good things to savour.’
CLASSIC FM MAGAZINE (5*)
‘While the music of Frenchman Joseph Bodin de Boismortier… is littered with moments of charm and quaint magnetism, it is the exquisite playing of the early music group Passacaglia that makes this new release… well worth the purchase.’
THE SCOTSMAN