Corelli: Concerti grossi, Op. 6 (12, complete)

The release of Concerti Grossi Opus 6 marks the beginning of Linn and The Avison Ensemble’s commitment to record Corelli’s complete chamber music.

Arcangelo Corelli was one of the shining geniuses of the baroque era and his twelve Concerti Grossi are considered among the very best of Italian baroque output.

The twelve Concerti Grossi demonstrate an austere grandeur and a never-ending invention which is never routine.

The Avison Ensemble will release three further recordings of Corelli in 2013 which will mark the 300th anniversary of the composer’s death.

Known as the ‘Father of the Concerto Grosso’ Corelli showcased the form’s potential, popularised it, and wrote the first great music for it, although he did not actually invent the form!

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.

Arcangelo Corelli (1653–1713) was nothing less than a musical pioneer, a champion of the violin’s potential as a solo instrument and an immense influence on the composers who followed him, J.S. Bach and Handel included. As a virtuoso violinist, he wielded an unprecedented level of skill; as a composer, he was enormously popular throughout Europe.

Although the Italian composer’s legacy has been somewhat overshadowed in modern times, the 12 Concerti Grossi that comprise this recording are thoroughly worthy of rediscovery, and earned Corelli the description of ‘father of the concerto grosso’.

Indeed, he was one of the first composers to use the term, and established many of the genre’s recognisable features. The mixture of concerti da chiesa (church concertos, which alternate slow and fast tempi) and concerti da camera (chamber concertos, similar to the dance suite) demonstrates the imagination, innovation and versatility that his fellow composers so admired.

Although the vast popularity that Corelli enjoyed in his lifetime may have declined over the centuries, the influence of his 12 Concerti Grossi is undeniable, and can be felt in later concertos by composers like Geminiani and Vivaldi, not to mention Handel’s majestic Concerti Grossi Op.6. Drawn from Brilliant Classics’ criticallyacclaimed edition of Corelli’s complete works, there is much for listeners to discover and enjoy in these recordings, which feature outstanding readings by a leading period-instrument ensemble, Musica Amphion, led from the harpsichord by Pieter-Jan Belder.