The Bach Family Circle
Track Listings
| 1. -4. Sonata in g minor BWV 1035 JS Bach | ||
| 2. -10 Capriccio sopra la lontananza del suo fratello dilettissimo, BWV 992 JS Bach | ||
| 3. -13 Sonata in g minor, JS Bach | ||
| 4. -18 Methodische Sonata no.4, GP Telemann | ||
| 5. -21 "Hobo Solo", CPE Bach |
Editorial Reviews This is not a reconstruction of a lost repertoire but an exploration of a hypothetical, imaginary tonal persona...the voice of the lost Bach oboe. It is both the utterance of the lament of the brother leaving his family circle, and the projection of his voice into the voice that his absence produces.
Label Comments
Harold Love wrote in the Journal of the Victorian Record Guild: "This is a record that will provide lasting enjoyment as well as opening up new territories for the baroque oboe. "The present record delightfully sets out to redeem Bach's oversight of providing no chamber or solo music for oboe by appropriating three works written for other instruments: the flute sonatas in b minor and g minor and the "Capriccio on the Departure of a Bleoved Brother", originally for harpsichord. The last piece, an old favourite from the harpsichordist Ann Murphy's repertoire, introduces the oboe intermittently on the grounds that the brother Bach is believed to have been farewelling was himself an oboist. Even the sourest of purists could hardly quarrel with the result. The two flute sonatas are a sterner challenge. The b minor/g minor (Bach at his most intricate and introspective) poses severe technical difficulties which are brilliantly surmounted by the performers. The drop of a major third in pitch gives the work a dark timbre which I find more suited to its passionate character than the original key. The g minor sonata (authenticity doubted by some) is played! in its original key, where it sounds so effective as to make one wonder whether it was not really written for the oboe. The other two works on the disk are the always welcome CPE Bach g minor sonata, and one of the Telemann "Methodische Sonaten", both of which receive captivating performances. Geoffrey Burgess plays with a warm "speaking" tone and not too much of "les larmes dans la voix" (the occupational hazard of oboists). There are some remarkable feats of prestidigitation in the fast passages but the playing never becomes mechanical. This is the reverse of the morse-code style too often heard when players of the modern oboe perform baroque music. Instead, the rhetoric of the phrase is always allowed to determine the weight and duration of the individual note. Ann Murphy's solo playing has always displayed a rare gift for weaving together contrapuntal lines in a way that perfectly preserves their rhythmical individulaity. Here by necessity she is more of the accompanist, constructing a subtle, always illuminating commentary around the text of the soloist. The imitations in the slow movement of the second Bach sonata are handled with an especial charm. I suspect that the recording makes the oboe more of a soloist and less of a partner than the performers intended. Of course, in chamber music really meant for chambers there was no single "right" balance, since the listeners would all be situated differently in relation to the instruments. The recording does at least convey the spirit of such music making, inviting us to be overhearers of a musical conversation rather than consumers of a public performance. This is a record that will provide lasting enjoyment as well as opening up new territories for the baroque oboe." For Australian music lovers only: "The accompanying wine should be a Barossa shirza with a soft, dry finish and just the right amount of tannin."
Album Description
The Bach Family Circle: Music for Oboe and Harpsichord This disc takes as its starting point and inspiration the Capriccio on the Departure of a Beloved Brother. What might Johann Jacob Bach (1682-1722) have played if he had remained in the Bach family circle? What might Johann Sebastian, his sons and colleagues (like GP Telemann, godfather to CPE Bach) have conceived for him? The works are performed on period instruments.
The Bach Family Circle, Music, CPE Bach, Telemann JS Bach, Ann Murphy, harpsichord Geoffrey Burgess Baroque oboe
Music Info:
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