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Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 - 1788): The Complete Keyboard Concertos Vol. 4, containing 1. Concerto in G Major, H. 412 (Wq. 9) - World Première Recording; 2. Concerto in D Major, H. 4126 (Wq. 13); 3. Concerto in D Minor, H. 420 (Wq. 17) - World Première Recording; cadenzas are partly by CPE Bach and partly improvised by the harpsichordist. Performers: Miklòs Spányi, harpsichord and early fortepiano; Concerto Armonico (6 or 7/2/1/1), directed from the violin by Péter Szüts and from the keyboard by Miklós Spányi. Recorded at the Angyalföld Reformed Church in Budapest, Hungary, in October 1995 and March 1996. Released in 1997 as BIS CD-768. Total playing time: approx. 65 mins.This is the fourth volume of a long series of BIS recordings documenting the complete works for harpsichord and strings by the second son of Johann Sebastian Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel. The notes in the CD booklets are provided by members of the team at the University of Maryland who are working on a complete edition of Emanuel Bach's works. Miklós Spányi has decided on the basis of his musical intuition which keyboard instrument to use in each instance - on this fourth volume we hear a copy of a large harpsichord by the North German instrument-maker Hieronymus Hass and a copy of a 1749 Silbermann fortepiano, a very rare instrument (both instruments are pictured in color on the back cover of the booklet). Spànyi has carefully compared the autograph manuscripts with later revisions by the composer himself (copies to be found in the Royal Conservatory of Brussels in Belgium), and here generally opts for the later versions. In his highly interesting notes, he gives his justification for every decision; it seems that H. 416 was probably originally a flute concerto that the composer later transcribed for keyboard so that the use of a fortepiano with its silvery tone works very well in giving a feeling for the original as well as being highly entertaining and pleasing to the ear in its own right.Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach was, in the eighteenth century, the one people meant when they spoke of "Bach". He was born when his father was 29 years old, spent his youth learning the musician's trade with his father in Leipzig and, at the age of 20, moved to Frankfurt an der Oder in order to study law (but where he also took charge of musical activities). In 1738 he moved again, this time to Berlin where he became harpsichordist at the Court of the future King of Prussia, Frederick (the Great) and where he published his famous theoretical treatise "Essay on the True Way of Playing the Keyboard". In 1768 he was called to be director of church music in the city of Hamburg, where he remained until his death. Altogether he wrote 64 works for keyboard and strings, but also many works for clavichord or harpsichord solo, for pianoforte, a good deal of chamber music, songs and sacred vocal works. His life spanned most of the 18th century, and his name is usually associated with the musical version of "Sturm und Drang" (infelicitously translated as "storm and stress") or "Empfindsamkeit" (sensibility). His works for keyboard and string ensemble are as important for the development of the piano concerto as are Haydn's symphonies for the classical symphony.The three concertos on this disc were all written between approx. 1741 and 1745 in Berlin and give an excellent impression of how the young composer, now around 30, had gained in confidence and was emancipating himself from his father and beginning to experiment in his own personal style. The first movement of H. 412 with its boisterous violin ritornelli, the second movement of H. 420 with its charming melody "un poco adagio" and unusual bass line and the springy last movement of H. 416 all bear witness to the effervescent energy and inventiveness of a composer who was generally considered a genius.My impression of the recording is that it makes progress over the previous three volumes, the performers becoming ever more liberated and really enjoying themselves and the engineers perfecting what was a good sound in the first place - this time I felt I could hear the bass strings even more clearly than before, and the balance is well nigh perfect. This series looks as though it will be getting more and more interesting as it goes along! Great stuff!
