Handel: Keyboard Suite, HWV 439 in G minor (Suite de pièce Vol. 2 No. 6)

Handel’s solo keyboard music has for too long been overshadowed by his operas, oratorios, and orchestral music. This comparative neglect seems unjust in view of the considerably large quantity of keyboard music which exists amongst his massive output.

Handel was one of the first composers to free the keyboard suite from the formal constraints of Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Gigue frequently used by German composers of the seventeenth and early eighteenth century, such as Froberger.

Gilbert Rowland first studied the harpsichord with Millicent Silver. Whilst still a student at the Royal College of Music, he made his debut at Fenton House 1970 and first appeared at the Wigmore Hall in 1973.

His mentors have included Kenneth Gilbert and Fernando Valenti. Recitals at the Wigmore Hall and Purcell Room, appearances at major festivals in this country and abroad, together with broadcasts for Capital Radio and Radio 3 have helped to establish his reputation as one of Britain's leading harpsichordists.

His numerous records of works by Scarlatti, Soler, Rameau and Fischer have received considerable acclaim from the national press. The recording of the 13-CD set of Soler sonatas with Naxos was completed in 2006. He also recorded a CD of Sonatas by Albero for London Independent Records two years ago, which was released in 2009. This is his first recording for Divine Art.

Racha Arodachy combines the virtuoso’s unrivalled power and the poet’s generous musicality, making her one of the most engaging artists of our time.

Ragna Schirmer plays the 1720 and 1733 keyboard suites on a modern concert grand piano.

"All these finely recorded performances are models of musical grace and resilience." Gramophone July 2008

Handel’s harpsichord music may have languished in the shadow of Bach’s more famed mastery of the instrument, but as these new recordings and scholarly notes by Michael Borgstede show, such comparisons are invidious. Handel was known as a superb keyboard player, and these dance suites exploit the expressive and technical resources of his instrument with no less mastery than that of his Leipzig counterpart, and with a joie de vivre that makes listening a constant diversion and delight. There are very few rival sets of this music on record, and Borgstede has made an important contribution to what will be the worldwide celebrations to mark the 250th anniversary of Handel’s death in 2009.

Recorded in 2008.

Extensive booklet notes by the performer.

Scott Ross "Exemplary style … a fine set" Penguin Guide 2008

Sviatoslav Richter was born in 1915 and died in August 1997. He was a Soviet pianist, widely recognised as one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century. He was well known for the depth of his interpretations, virtuoso technique and extensive repertoire. In March 1934, Richter gave his first recital in his home town of Odessa. He did not start formal piano studies until three years later, with Heinrich Neuhaus, a famous pianist and piano teacher at the Moscow Conservatoire. During Richter's audition for Neuhaus, the teacher apparently whispered to a fellow student 'this man's a genius'. Although Neuhaus taught many great pianists, including Emil Gilels and Radu Lupu, it is said that he considered Richter to be 'the genius pupil' for whom he had been waiting all his life. The West first became aware of Richter through recordings he made in the 1950s. One of Richter's first advocates in the West was Emil Gilels, who stated during his first tour of the United States that the critics, who were giving Gilels rave reviews, should 'wait until you hear Richter'. Sviatoslav Richter (who had received the Stalin and Lenin prizes and became People's Artist of the RSFSR), gave his first concert tours in the USA in 1960 and in Britain and France in 1961. While Richter enjoyed performing in front of an audience, he hated planning concerts years in advance, and in later years took to playing at very short notice in small, quite often darkened halls, with only a small lamp lighting the score. Richter claimed that this setting helped the audience focus on the music being performed, rather than on extraneous and irrelevant matters such as the performer's grimaces and gestures. Richter's repertoire ranged from Handel and Bach to Szymanowski, Berg, Webern, Stravinsky, Bartók, Hindemith, Britten, and Gershwin. Central to his repertoire were the works of all the composers who are represented in this Icon set.