Various Artists - Cello in Baroque Italy - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Il violoncello di Corelli leads us to the origins of the solo cello literature - although one should actually use the term violone. In fact, the cello, as we know it today in it's standard form, had many different sizes before it's current proportions became generally established. Some instruments were larger, and the smaller ones were referred to by the diminutive form of the term violone - hence the word violoncello. And one of these early 'bigger brothers' is the main protagonist of this recording the instrument played by Alessandro Palmeri was built by Simone Cimapane in Rome in 1685. It is a rare testimony to the original size of the violone. It is furthermore a unique instrument because it was used in ensembles in Rome in which Corelli himself played. Alessandro Palmeri presents a compilation of works from the early solo literature for cello by composers such as Domenico Gabrielli, Giuseppe Pietro Gaetano Boni, Giuseppe Colombi and Giovanni Battista Vitali. The extraordinarily prolific period, both artistically and musically, which prevailed in Emilia Romagna throughout the 17th century, provided the conditions for the creation and development of the cello literature. The works on this recording mark the transition from the epoch of the violone to the epoch of the violoncello. With them, the cello was ultimately freed from the continuo role to which it had previously been limited.

Various Artists - 18th Century Italian Cello Sonatas / Various [COMPACT DISCS] date 02/27/2001

I solisti di Pavia was founded about twenty years ago and nowadays can be seen as a stable and affirmed ensemble in both the Italian and European music scenes. Along with their leader, Italian cellist Enrico Dindo, the group has become internationally renowned. This ensemble presents a Chamber repertoire which runs from the XVIII Century to present day giving to the audience an interpretation which joins accurate historical performance practice with a fresh and lively musicality. In this album Enrico Dindo and the ensemble Solisti di Pavia present some of the most famous works for cello from Max Bruch Kol Nidrei (opening the album) to Saint-Saëns Le Cygne.