Da Tempera Velha - Palacio Songbook - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Duo Pleyel releases it's second album on Linn, following it's 'winning performances' (BBC Music Magazine) of Schubert. Richard Egarr and Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya perform the complete original works for piano four-hands by the unjustly neglected composer Jan Ladislav Dussek. Born into a Bohemian musical family, Jan Ladislav led a colorful life, both personally and as a virtuoso. He was a much sought-after teacher and helped push forward the development of the piano. Before his death in 1812 (perhaps helped by a fondness for strong drink and rich food) he enjoyed the company of the great and the good from all walks of life and travelled widely throughout Europe. His somewhat roguish character led to him having to flee for his safety on at least two occasions. Once from Russia, where he was accused of participating in a plot against the Empress, and again from London, where a joint publishing venture (with his father-in-law and a certain Lorenzo Da Ponte) went bankrupt. Despite these dubious personal flaws, Dussek was an acclaimed and hugely important composer and pianist during his lifetime. Duo Pleyel offers you a delicious and hearty musical feast - it is time for Dussek to be back on the world's musical menu.

Fernando Lopes-Graca's importance to 20th-century Portuguese music cannot be overestimated. His study of native songs and traditions has been compared to that of Bartok, and the soulful melodies of the Três cancoes corais are an early example of his highly effective integration of folk style into rigorous historically established forms. From the reverence and purity of the Christmas Cantata songs to the harmonic density of the Três liricas castelhanas de Camoes, the powerful and often deeply moving combination of Lopes-Graca's use of classical structure alongside his country's musical heritage finds it's zenith in his writing for voices.

Camerata Trajectina - Maassluise Songbook [COMPACT DISCS] date 09/09/2014