Volume 27 Issue 1 - September / October 2021

is lost with today’s equal temperament, where the subtly varying
interval sizes are smoothed out.
The Lautenwerk was a Baroque keyboard instrument, essentially a
lute-harpsichord with gut strings that could be plucked with different
quill materials at different points along their length. On aufs
Lautenwerk, Lippel performs two works for the instrument – the
Suite in E Minor BWV996 and the Sonata in C Minor BWV997 – along
with the Prelude, Fuga & Allegro in E-flat Major BWV998, written for
lute or harpsichord (New Focus Recordings FCR920/MicroFest
Records MF 18 microfestrecords.com).
On MAK/Bach Grgic presents a simply
beautiful recital of solo masterworks and chorales:
the Flute Partita in A Minor BWV1013;
the Solo Violin Sonata in G Minor BWV1001;
and the Cello Suite in D Major BWV1012.
Four brief chorales fill out the disc (MicroFest
Records MF19 microfestrecords.com).
To be honest, it will probably take a very
good ear to fully distinguish the nuances in
the tuning here, but there’s no denying the beauty of the sound or the
beauty of the playing, with both performers displaying faultless technique
– no easy task given the variations in individual fret placements
– and an unerring feel for the period style. The Grgic CD, especially his
own transcriptions of the Violin Sonata and the Cello Suite is perhaps
the more satisfying program of the two, but with music and playing of
this remarkable quality there’s no need to choose between them.
The guitar works of Ludovico Roncalli have
long been popular in modern transcriptions,
but on Roncalli Complete Guitar Music they
are performed by Bernhard Hofstötter on a
Baroque guitar attributed to Matteo Sellas of
Venice, c.1640 (Brilliant Classics 2CD 95856
brilliantclassics.com).
The five-course Baroque guitar had five
pairs of gut strings (the first course often
single-strung, as here) with the fourth and fifth sometimes octavestrung
(here with a low octave on the fourth course only).
Roncalli’s 1692 Capricci armonici sopra la chitarra spagnola
consists of nine sonate (suites), with eight paired in major and relative
minor keys, an opening Preludio and Alemanda being followed by
various dance forms. Movements are really short – mostly under two
minutes. There’s no indication of pitch or
tuning, but the actual pitch heard is down a
minor third from the listed keys.
Monica Hall’s excellent booklet essay
notes that Roncalli’s “exquisite melodic lines
and elegant counterpoint are seamlessly
combined with the strummed five-part
chords which were still a defining feature of
guitar music at the time.”
Hofstötter’s masterful playing is an absolute delight throughout.
The addition of a sixth string (the low E) in the 1790s established the
guitar form that would flourish throughout the 19th century. In his second
volume of Histoires de guitares Quebec guitarist David Jacques features 15
historical guitars from his astonishing private collection, all but one from
the period 1800-1880, and each one illustrated in colour in the excellent
booklet (ATMA Classique ACD2 2821 atmaclassique.com/en).
The 28 short, charming pieces by Giuliani, Sor, Carulli, Paganini
and 13 lesser-known composers were chosen specifically to showcase
each instrument’s individual qualities and character, and they include
some real gems – the three pieces by the English composer Ernest
Shand, for instance.
They’re all beautifully played too, with clean technique, sensitivity
and a nice range of tonal colour.
Drifting, Volume 3 of the New Lullaby
Project is the latest CD from guitarist Aaron
Larget-Caplan in his excellent series of
specially commissioned guitar solos which
began in 2007 (Six String Sound 888-03
stonerecords.co.uk).
The 15 short pieces here were written
between 2010 and 2020 by 15 different
composers, and while they’re not intended
to help children get to sleep there’s nothing
strident or challenging to the ears. “The compositional language leans
tonal and the tuning remains mostly standard,” says Larget-Caplan,
“but don’t worry, harmonics still abound.” Indeed they do, in another
captivating addition to a significant series that continues to add miniature
gems to the contemporary guitar repertoire.
You can find my review of Nights Transfigured – Volume 2 of
the New Lullaby Project in the May/June 2021 edition of Strings
Attached.
VOCAL
On the Wings of Song
Kira Braun; Peter Krochak
Independent (kirabraunsoprano.com)
! The soprano
Kira Braun has
been a performing
soloist since just
2014. Yet she has
already released six
recordings – five
with pianist Peter
Krochak – the latest
of which is, very possibly her best. Picking
up from where their last album The Echoing
Air left off, On the Wings of Song – with
more art songs by Poulenc, together with
works by Mendelssohn and Obradors – is a
ravishing duet between a singer who excels at
being both a lyric and dramatic soprano and
a pianist who springs and leaps with much
agility and nuance.
All the songs receive terrific performances
and although the program is weighted
slightly in favour of Poulenc and Obradors,
Mendelssohn’s Wanderlied is particularly
radiant – perhaps predictably so, given
Braun’s German heritage. She strikes an
ideal balance between a certain compassion
and sophistication, something that makes
Mendelssohn seem quite ideally suited for
Braun as she delivers his songs with affectionate
communication of the poetry. Her
command of Poulenc is unrivalled and she
proves this with her airy sculpting of Les
chemins de l’amour. She also grows into
the characters of Obradors’ songs with great
feeling and intensity.
Krochak’s contribution to the unique
musicality of this disc cannot be overestimated.
Being a singer himself seems to give
him an added edge over others who might
have accompanied Braun. This is what gives
his playing a beguiling refinement, enabling
him to traverse this repertoire with judicious
melodiousness and delicacy.
Raul da Gama
A Sanctuary in Song
Daniel Cabena; Stephen Runge
Chestnut Hall Music
(chestnuthallmusic.com)
! A Sanctuary in
Song is a collaboration
between
countertenor Daniel
Cabena and pianist
Stephen Runge. The
album follows a
man’s journey via
the stages of life,
love, loss and death. We follow him first in
a prelude, and then, in his wanderings and
sanctuary explorations interspersed with
instrumental commentaries.
Although the repertoire is mostly curated
from the English art songs of composers
born in the 19th century (York Bowen,
John Ireland, Roger Quilter, Charles
Villiers Stanford, Peter Warlock and Ralph
Vaughan Williams), other more contemporary
composers are also featured
34 | September and October 2021 thewholenote.com