Corelli: Violin Sonata Op. 5 No. 6 in A major

The Op. 5 collection consists of eleven sonatas; the twelfth, and most popular, work is a series of twenty three variations on the ‘Follia’ of which Corelli was especially proud.

All twelve pieces contain a variety of difficult violin techniques and director Pavlo Beznosiuk takes centre stage; his polished playing thrilling in its virtuosity.

Corelli’s contribution to the history of violin performance was immense. All six of his published collections of instrumental music demonstrate his exceptional skill as a violinist and composer, but it was in his Op. 5 Sonatas that Corelli had the most significant impact on violin technique.

This marks the second recording in a series which will see Linn and The Avison Ensemble record Corelli’s complete chamber music. The Avison Ensemble will release two further recordings of Corelli in 2013 celebrating the 300th anniversary of the composer’s death.

Formed in 1985, the Ensemble has attracted great critical acclaim. The Guardian commented: ‘I’d take the Avison Ensemble over Karajan…any day’.

The Avison Ensemble comprises some of Europe's leading Baroque musicians, including artists from The Hague, Germany, France, Austria and London, with international soloists from all over the globe.

Pavlo Beznosiuk, the UK's foremost baroque violin virtuoso, is in demand as a soloist and orchestral leader performing regularly with the Academy of Ancient Music and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.

This complete recording of Corelli's magnificent Op. 5 Violin Sonatas is performed by Trio Corelli of Denmark on period instruments. The Opus 5 Violin Sonatas contain six church sonatas and six chamber sonatas.

No less than seven different versions of embellishments to the slow movements of the church sonatas are known, among which the Dubourg and Geminiani versions are the most famous. The embellishments of the church sonatas believed to originate from Corelli are used on this recording.

The chamber sonatas were not adorned by Corelli’s own hand, but Trio Corelli adds embellishments in keeping with the tradition of the day. An exception is Sonata No. 9, where the group uses Geminiani’s version, a perfect example of how these sonatas continued to inspire future generations of Corelli’s students.

Corelli’s Violin Sonatas Op.5 were the most popular printed music of his time and adaptations of these works, for viola da gamba, soon followed.

This CD includes Sonatas Nos. III, VI & VIII, as well as Handel’s Sonata in G minor and Johann Schenck’s L’echo du Danube.

As both composer and violin virtuoso, Corelli’s reputation and fame was immense. In this regard, there is no lack of important sources bearing witness to a genuine enthusiasm for his music, which was welcomed as a revelation, an illumination, a pure and refined distillation of the traditional language of the Baroque sonata and Italian style.

It is not difficult to imagine how the compositions of Corelli would have circulated all over Europe, being performed, listened to, copied and also transcribed. Among musicians, there was a veritable legion of composers influenced by Corelli’s models. This phenomenon is one of the reasons for the existence of a transcription for bass viola da gamba and continuo of Corelli’s Opus 5, originally composed for violin and continuo.

The manuscript used for the present recording contains all 12 sonatas and can be found in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. It is of anonymous authorship, most likely originating in the German-speaking world. The transcription was probably made on the basis of a copy of the original edition for violin printed in Rome in 1700, the only autograph edition.

Guido Balestracci is considered to be “one of the finest exponents of the viola da gamba” (Diapason, 2002). As a soloist and as director of his ensemble L'Amoroso, founded in 1997, he plays throughout Europe, the USA, South America and Asia. On the present recording, he is accompanied by such known artists as Paolo Pandolfo, Eduardo Egüez, and Gaetano Nasillo.

Music played a prominent role in the court of Modena. The d’Este dukes gave enduring support and an independent school was established which was the vanguard of virtuoso and expressive violin playing in the Baroque epoch. This CD includes works by Uccellini, Cazzati, Bononcini and Corelli.

Winter & Winter's first audio production with the Freitagsakademie and soprano Susanne Rydén presents Handel in Italy, combining his works with compositions by Corelli and Scarlatti. Handel's successful career in England was based on the reputation he gained as a composer and musician during his travels through Italy. At the age of 21 he had already established himself as a successful opera composer in Hamburg, before he journeyed to Italy in late 1706. He passed through Florence, Rome, Naples and Venice where he met and performed with Italy's composer elite: Arcangelo Corelli, Antonio Lotti, Alessandro and Domenico Scarlatti. The Swedish soloist Susanne Rydén is one of Europe's sucessful sopranos specialising in early music. Her love and understanding of the colourful Baroque repertoire has led her to work with internationally acclaimed ensembles and conductors, recent concert seasons having included Bach's Christmas Oratorio with Nicholas McGegan and the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra in San Fransisco, the St. Matthew Passion with the Nederlandse Bachvereiniging, a programme of Handel with Harry Bicket and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, Haydn's Creation with the Kölner Akademie, Handel's Messiah with the Bach Collegium Japan under Masaaki Suzuki, concerts with Lars Ulrik Mortensen and Concerto Copenhagen, Mozart Concert Arias with the Australian Brandenburg Baroque Orchestra and Paul Dyer, and European tours with Emma Kirkby as well as Collegium Vocale and Philippe Herreweghe. Recently she was the soloist at the 2009 Nobel Banquet in Stockholm.

"The Swedish soprano Susanne Rydén captivated her audience. The singer's enchanting presentation of the programme proved an exemplary demonstration of how to keep an audience eating out of one's hands." Goldberg