Concerti a quattro
Recorded 2018 - Church of Bornival, Belgium Arrangements for Oboe, Recorder, and Continuo
- Rachel Heymans, recorder and oboe
- Anne-Catherine Gosselé, recorder
- Leonor Palazzo, 5-string cello
- Paule Van den Driessche, harpsichord
It’s not that unusual for ensembles to adopt works for their instrumentarium, and in this case, this is what these ladies have done featuring music by Corelli (by way of an arrangement by J.C. Schickhardt), Morel, Handel (or was it Telemann?), Mouret, and Vivaldi.
The Corelli on disc is the (famous) “Christmas Concerto”, from his opus 6 collection of concerti grossi. Here the two lead parts are realized by recorders. The cello in this case has a very gritty sound and Leonor Palazzo plays with good dynamics. The harpsichord part, played by Paule Van den Driessche is less creative, to my ears, which would have provided more texture to this very transparent rendition of the Corelli.
I can’t speak authoritatively about the arrangement of this piece for this configuration, but know Schickhardt as a composer of recorder music.
The Chaconne by Jacques Morel is why I came across this album, as a friend was commenting upon my favorite performance of this popular piece. I can’t say that I was terribly familiar with it, but it is one of those where the melody instrument can be adapted; in this case oboe takes the lead with an independent part for what I imagine is a gamba; the cello here mascarades as one, and does so convincingly. The second part goes to the recorder, and while I think a transverse flute for my taste would cement the French style, the piece works nevertheless with the instruments brought to this party.
The D minor “quartet” has double attribution to both Handel and Telemann. I am familiar with this piece. If I am not mistaken, it was featured on the album of quartets by Musica Antiqua Köln. It has a TWV number, 43:d3. I’d never considered it Handelian but now who is to know.
The texture is very different in this rendition featuring two recorders; the original version features a violin and flute. The comparison I made with the MAK version has me definitely preferring the one directed by Goebel. The MAK version adopts a wholly different style wherein Bradamante is far more laid-back in their approach. The third movement could almost be a rhapsodic line for the cello and probably was under-developed as such by them.
The larger piece on the is album is the J.J. Mouret suite. We of course probably know Mouret for his trumpet fanfares, but his oeuvre includes stage works, and this piece dates from 1718 after his arrival in Paris. The scoring of this work is left to some degree to the performers, listing violins, flutes, and oboes as options. The arrangement here with a recorder playing the higher part I think works well, recalling for me an earlier album by Musica Pacifica performing works by Marais. Particular lightness is afforded the Tambourins before the most significant portion of the suite is presented, an elaborate Chaconne. Again, I was in want of hearing a transverse flute at times coupled with the oboe, but despite the thinner timbre of a recorder, both women here play with conviction and mix well together in leading the melodic material.
The Vivaldi that closes the album has been an earworm for a number of years for me; I remember borrowing an album with his “chamber concertos for wind instruments,” likely coupled with those by Nicolas de Chédeville. The cello and harpsichord here sound a bit clumsy to me in this recording, probably due in part to the dominance of the cello’s sound over the melody instruments, which isn’t unique to this Vivaldi concerto. I remember this one being performed with bassoon as part of the continuo group, an adopted practice of matching double reeds on top with the bottom.
The overall sound in this recording is good, but balance, as mentioned, might have been improved. I can only imagine the players wanting to be able to see one another and communicate visually as they played; but sonically, I’d have preferred the winds up front a few steps from the cello.
All in all, this is not the disc to go for if you’re just discovering these works; however as “arrangements” to meet the needs of these performers, it’s a well-chosen recital of great pieces from the mid-late baroque period. All the musicians are in good form. Their style does have a relaxed disposition and while there could have been opportunities for more declaration and rhetoric, I know many will like the approach as a contrast to other recordings that aim to put virtuosity in the front seat.
