Another highly original and ground breaking recording concept by Luca Quintavalle: Harpsichord Music by contemporary female composers.
This CD was not conceived solely from the important need to give female composers the visibility they deserve. It also looks for the "invisible" that these composers reveal to us. Additionally, it grants us the opportunity to understand the ways in which the rich, at times even contradictory, variety of their compositional styles can not only coexist, but inform and support each other. This recording acknowledges the fundamental contribution of women such as Wanda Landowska (1879-1959), Antoinette Vischer (1909-1973) , Elzbieta Chojnacka (1939-2017), Zuzana Růžičková (1927-2017), Mariolina De Robertis, Annelie de Man(1943- 2010), Genoveva Gálvez (1929-2021) and many others, without whom the harpsichord repertoire of the last 100 years would be significantly poorer, if not non-existent.
The composers presented are: Augusta Read Thomas (1964), Ursula Mamlok (1923- 2016), Tania León (1943), Graciane Finzi (1945), Karola Obermüller (1977), Errollyn Wallen (1958), Santa Ratniece (1977), Anna Thorvaldsdottir (1977), Sofia Gubaidulina (1931), Misato Mochizuki (1969). All of the transcriptions of this Cd were made by the artist in accordance with the composers’ intentions.
A fascinating soundscape of extraordinary music, full of unheard-of sounds, timbres and effects.
Luca Quintavalle is one of the most remarkable keyboard players of the moment. He has collaborated as a soloist with orchestras such as Concerto Köln, Les Talens Lyriques, Balthasar-Neumann-Ensemble, Cappella Gabetta, Il Canto d’Orfeo, Harmonie Universelle, Divino Sospiro, Il Pomo d’Oro, Capella Augustina, La Folia Barockorchester, Kölner Kammerorchester, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and WDR Sinfonieorchester.
His first solo recording of Jean-Baptiste Barrière’s and Bernard de Bury's harpsichord music by the label Brilliant Classics was chosen as “Recording of the month” from MusicWeb International and got really positive reviews (“a great deal of excellent playing by Luca Quintavalle; enjoyable listening, which may be unreservedly recommended.” Early Music- Oxford Journal; “I don't expect this recording to be surpassed” American Record Guide. Recently he recorded the Piano Sonatas by Anton Eberl (BC 95929) for Brilliant Classics, as well as “Italian Contemporary Music for Harpsichord” (BC 96408), to great critical acclaim.
