Composer: Thomas Arne, Johann Christian Bach, John Blow, Jeremiah Clarke, William Croft, Maurice Greene, Richard Jones
Performer: Sophie Yates
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Chandos
Catalogue: CHAN0814
Release: 2016
Size: 504 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Blow: Chaconne in F major
02. Blow: Morlake Ground (for keyboard)
Clarke: Choice Lessons for the Harpsichord or Spinet, Suite No. 2 in A Major
03. I. Almand
04. II. Round O
05. III. Jigg
Croft: Harpsichord Suite No. 6 in D Minor
06. I. Slow almand
07. II. Corant
08. III. Saraband, slow
Greene: A Collection of Lessons for the Harpsichord, Suite No. 14 in C Major
09. I. Allegro
10. II. Vivace
11. III. Allegro
Jones: 3rd Set of Lessons for Harpsichord in B-Flat Major
12. I. Prelude
13. II. Sarabande
14. III. Allegro
15. IV. Minuet
16. V. Bourree
17. VI. Largo
18. VII. Giga: Allegro
Arne: Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 in G Major
19. I. Prelude
20. II. Allegro
21. III. Minuet
Bach JC: Harpsichord Sonata in C Minor, Op. 17 No. 2, W.A 8
22. I. Allegro
23. II. Andante
24. III. Prestissimo
On this new album, our exclusive artist Sophie Yates focuses on English harpsichord music, after successful French and Spanish recordings and a highly praised Handel series, among much else.
As she explains: ‘With this anthology, I hope to give an overview of English keyboard music during the course of the eighteenth century. Two significant figures cast their long shadows over this period of music in England: the first of these is Henry Purcell, whose legacy dominated the beginning of the century; the second is George Frideric Handel, who embodies the idea of eighteenth-century English music for so many. However, this recital explores the work of the other English composers who, in their various ways, wove the fabric of the musical scene in London at a time when it was the most vibrant city in Europe.’
From the influence of Purcell in the opening pieces by his pupil John Blow to the distinctive harmonic language of the concluding Sonata by Johann Christian Bach, this recital spans a century of forgotten yet immensely diverse English music for the harpsichord.