The Age of Extremes - Francesco Corti
When auditioning this new release featuring Francesco Corti on harpsichord, I was hoping the entire album was as impressive as the first track I’d chosen. There was fiery playing, a crisp, clear sound, and the energy of the soloist and the orchestra seemed well in sync.
This album features works by Georg Benda, Wilhelm Friedemann Bach and Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach. While Bach’s sons may not need an introduction, Georg Benda was a violinist for Frederick the Great before serving the Duke of Gotha as a kapellmeister. Like Bach’s sons, he was active in a time when German composers were exploring new styles to overtake the learned and sometimes backwards looking baroque aesthetic. While the instruments hadn’t yet changed, the style most definitely was something that their generation played with, writing music that favored melody over counterpoint, but also elements of “storm and stress.” In the case of the Bach sons, it’s remarkable to see what they accomplished compositionally, given their tutelage in their father’s style. This album includes two concertos by Benda, a two-movement Sinfonia by W.F. Bach, in addition to his concerto in D major Fk. 41; and two solo works for keyboard by C.P.E. Bach. The sinfonia serves to allow Il Pomo d’Oro to play on their own, a nice break that Corti returns with the C.P.E. Bach pieces. I did not have access to the liner notes for this audition.
I got to see Corti perform at the last Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF), playing a solo recital that included works by J.S. Bach. He was an assured player, and he showed-off just a bit too, taking things hyperspeed at one point, to the delight of those in the audience.
His recordings of J.S. Bach’s works have been easy selections for quality productions; this new release on Arcana is among the brightest yet.
The Benda F minor concerto is nothing short of a ravishing delight. The ensemble is backed by some solid bass support which was a fun thing to experience with headphones that don’t roll off in the lower frequencies. The rollicking theme is cut from the same cloth as some of C.P.E. Bach’s Sturm und drang orchestral works. The solo episodes are written so that the harpsichord stands on its own, interjections from the orchestra keep the drama alive. The middle movement contrasts with a movement focused on melody, forecasting the style of Haydn and Mozart. The writing for the keyboard includes plenty of notes, to help sustain things, no doubt, being idiomatic writing for an instrument such as the harpsichord. The piece would do well too on a period piano, but I kept thinking this movement might have been handled differently by Benda had he access to a modern piano.
While Benda’s works focused a lot on religious works, it’s remarkable how fashionable his outer movements are, full of the drama one might have experienced in the opera house. I am glad the second concerto, in B minor, was again in a minor key. The style is different in the B minor work, employing more of a galant feel to the theme in the opening fast movement. The slow movement opens with the keyboard part supplying basso continuo support. The keyboard then takes up the melodic theme presented by the upper strings and then capitalizes upon decorating that line with elaborate flourishes. Among the two slow movements, this one was my favorite, the part for keyboard being the more interesting. The B minor concerto is a fitting end to the disc, with more storm-inspired fire for the entire ensemble. Corti’s precision is matched by that of the orchestra, which sounds amazingly tight.
Among the two pieces for solo harpsichord include C.P.E. Bach’s variations on the La Folia theme, Wq. 118/9. In so writing this piece, Bach took it upon himself to continue a tradition well alive in his father’s time of writing a series of variations on a popular piece that was born from a dance. The piece comes with challenges of playing a lot of notes quickly. The better performances won’t make the music sound mechanical, but still will be played with tight control. Corti answers the call with aplomb. It reminds me of the man I saw live before me showing off a bit, but doing so with ultimate control and precision. The Bach piece still has some storm and stress about it, alongside the common flair to juxtapose wild moments with those that are more introspective and simple. The style Bach achieves clearly takes this piece into the new style, both harmonically and galant gestures. Corti renders this piece with care, I think. The fast and furious stuff is enhanced with the quieter and softer sections.
W.F.’s sinfonia is written in a tradition of a two-part piece that starts slow then is followed by a more energetic, contrapuntal movement. The second movement is a nod to his father, I think, but is also infused with some energy evoking fury. I was not familiar with this piece and enjoyed it, a great counterpoint to Mozart’s adagio and fugues.
At the central position of this recording is W.F.’s concerto in D; despite it’s major key, it too captures the stormy elements too. His strong compositional style is alive in the repeating figure that he keeps alive in the orchestral part during the keyboard solo, foreshadowing Beethoven’s theme in the opening of his fifth symphony. Between the solo sections he provides different styles for the soloist, making each entrance more interesting. The runs that come are all played so technically brilliantly by Corti. The third movement juxtaposes rising and falling figures, again passing to the harpsichord more elaborate versions of what first appears in simplified form for the orchestral parts. His play with rhythm is another compositional element that is brought out to good effect. The energy of the theme gets translated into some seriously aggressive and fast moments for the soloist. Corti again is brilliant, as is the tight and agile orchestra.
In all, Cori and friends have brought together some high quality music to showcase the “age of extremes” that existed after the late baroque. Many emotional states are attempted through these composers’ music and Corti along with Il Pomo d’Oro were up to the challenges left for them. This is one of those recordings where I couldn’t even imagine this music being played better, nor sounding better. This release is an assured home run.
