A new recording by Myrna Herzog and Tal Arbel - "MATTHEW LOCKE: DUOS on Lewis viols from the same tree" - performed on twin historic bass viols

 

From what we have read, composer/theorist Matthew Locke (?1621-1677) was a headstrong, outspoken character who bore grudges and spoke his mind without much regard for the consequences. These traits did not, however, prevent him from becoming ranked as one of England's finest composers, albeit a composer living in turbulent times, times which saw the execution of a king, the temporary triumph of Republicanism and then the restoration of monarchy. When he died in August 1677, he had risen to become Charles II's Composer of the Wind Music and Composer for the Violins, and was at the forefront of re-establishing music at the Restoration. His works include a number of operas and the processional march for Charles II's coronation in 1661. Locke, however, has become a fairly obscure composer these days and unaccountably neglected, largely due to the fact that a lot of his music no longer exists. Nevertheless, an extensive collection of his chamber music has survived, thanks to the composer's own publishing efforts in the late 1660s. A recently-issued recording - "MATTHEW LOCKE: DUOS on Lewis viols from the same tree" - played by Myrna Herzog (Brazil-Israel) and Tal Arbel (Israel) offers listeners the opportunity to hear Locke's Duos for two bass viols, composed in 1652. They divide into four three-movement suites, each taking the form of two short fantasias followed by a triple-time dance.

 

What is unique here is that Herzog and Arbel play on twin historic viols produced at the turn of the 17^th century by distinguished British instrument maker Edward Lewis (1651-1717). Dendrochronology (the scientific method used to determine the age of a tree) has revealed that these two instruments were indeed made from the log of the same tree, felled around 1665. The more one listens to the suites, the more aware one becomes of the fact that each miniature movement is a perfectly constructed musical jewel, its richly beguiling melodic strains masterfully dovetailed. As each role challenges players with constant leaps between low and high registers, there is no 1st or 2nd part and the viols’ shared unique tonal harmony means that the listener is unable to distinguish between who is playing what and when! Two like-minded artists playing on identical twin instruments produce the perfect timbral blend. Herzog and Arbel's diligent reading into the pieces offers subtle reminders of Locke's experimenting with major/minor key clashes and contrasting rhythms. Waving the banner for English music, Locke has been quoted as saying that he "never yet saw any foreign instrumental composition worthy an English man's transcribing", but adding "a few French Corants excepted".  Indeed, evidence of his familiarity with the French style is present here via the presence of courants, although Locke's writing would have been significantly more virtuosic than French writing for viols at that time. Both the D major- and C minor Duos conclude with a fairly solid Corant, with the D major- and C major Duos each winding up with a buoyant, frisky Saraband, justifying this dance's place at the end as the fastest dance of the 17th-century suite.

 

I love the raw, real sound of the two Lewis viols; Myrna Herzog and Tal Arbel's playing on them emerges clean, unmannered and tasteful, both delicate and hearty, offering some eloquent affects, the overall soundscape nevertheless creating a colourful picture of the eccentric, inspired and daring composer himself. And, as they present the fine detail of each vignette, the players are obviously relishing their convivial musical conversations! The Duos juxtapose what Locke himself had referred to as "art and contrivance" with "light and airy musick".  Written for friends to play, and considered a part of the standard repertoire of gambists, this richly imaginative music is rarely performed in public. "MATTHEW LOCKE: DUOS on Lewis viols from the same tree" was recorded in May, 2024 by Eliahu Feldman at Ensemble PHOENIX’s centre in Raanana, Israel. Mastering was carried out by David Feldman, skilfully recreating the historical resonant ambiance suited to the viol sound. The cover photo was taken by Shlomo Moyal, the luthier who restored one of the viols following damage caused to it on a flight. Appearing on a number of digital platforms, the recording offers a rare opportunity to delight listeners in this pivotal and marvellous repertoire of the viol ensemble genre. 

 

 

J.C.F.Bach: Six Sonatas “für das Clavier mit Begleitung einer Flöte oder Violine” - a new recording on period instruments by Jochewed Schwarz (square piano) and Ashley Solomon (Baroque flute)

 

A recently-issued disc of Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach’s Six Sonatas “für das Clavier mit Begleitung einer Flöte oder Violine” (for the Clavier, with flute or violin accompaniment), performed by Ashley Solomon (flute) and Jochewed Schwarz (pianoforte), offers the listening public an opportunity to visit works of the lesser-known third of Johann Sebastian Bach’s four composing sons. Born in Leipzig, the sixteenth of J.S.Bach’s twenty children, and the ninth child born from the union with Anna Magdalena, J.C.F.Bach (1732-1795) received his musical education from his father and from a distant cousin Johann Elias Bach, who lived in the Bach house, serving as J.S. Bach’s personal assistant. Christoph Friedrich also served as his father’s copyist for a number of years and, like his brothers and father, was known as a virtuoso keyboard player. In 1750, the year of his father's death, Friedrich was offered the position of harpsichordist at the court of Count Wilhelm of Schaumberg-Lippe in Bückeburg, nine years later being promoted to Konzertmeister. (To avoid confusion with other members of the Bach family, he is often referred to as "Friedrich" or the "Bückeburg Bach".)  In 1778, Friedrich took leave of absence from his post, travelling to London to visit his brother Johann Christian. While in London, he was exposed to the music of Mozart and the burgeoning Classical style, the music he heard in London influencing his later works. Friedrich was a versatile composer, writing in a variety of forms, including symphonies, chamber music, keyboard music and vocal works. The number of printed compositions was limited, however, by the cost of printing and publishing and his music remained mostly in manuscript form. Sadly, a considerable part of it was lost in World War II.

 

Friedrich developed musically in keeping with the stylistic fashions of his time: his mature style is  hybrid, equally influenced by Italian and German characteristics, while his late works clearly belong to the Classical style. It was the Italianate tastes of Count Wilhelm that forced Friedrich Bach to assimilate the characteristics of that style in his middle period works, including the works on this recording, which attest to the galant style. Jochewed Schwarz spoke of this salon music as having been written not for professional- or virtuosic musicians (albeit not without challenges) but for the personal enjoyment and creativity of  players, the players, in this case, possibly including Count Wilhelm himself. Composed in the standard three-movement form some time before 1776 and published in Riga in 1777, the piano parts appeared in the C-clef. Indeed, to date, only three of the six have been published in modern notation.

 

In contrast to the title given to these sonatas, the melody instrument (the transverse Baroque flute here) does not accompany the harpsichord; different as they are in character and timbre, the two instruments perform as equal partners, their roles intertwining, commenting and imitating, at times, each busy with their own agendas. The artists' choice of instruments bears mentioning: Ashley Solomon chose to play a flute by Martin Wenner (2005) after Carlo Palanca (c.1750). In contrast to many other Baroque flutes, Turin bassoonist/instrument maker Palanca built his instruments with an oval embouchure, making for a more powerful sound, not rough in timbre, but rather offering diverse tonal shadings. Jochewed Schwarz plays a square piano by Johannes Zumpe and Gabriel Buntebart (1769). It seems that the oldest known square pianos were made in 1766 by Zumpe himself, a German instrument maker working in London and the first to inspire general interest in this instrument. Gabriel Buntebart, another of the numerous German piano makers settling in London during the mid-18th century, worked with the famous Johannes Zumpe until 1778. This square piano (housed in the Cobbe Collection) possesses a more metallic sound than Zumpe's later instruments, which were larger and fuller in sound.

 

Splendid salon music, the sonatas, although less elitist than some court repertoire of the time, are far from superficial. They invite players to be creative and spontaneous. Schwarz and Solomon's performance of the Six Sonatas vouches for well-oiled teamwork, their sense of rediscovery and fine-spun music-making giving splendid expression to J.C.F.Bach's wealth of lyrical melodies, his delicate textures and to the composer's refined sense of harmony, as the artists engage individually in a diversity of embellishments. The very different timbres of the two instruments do not hinder one's concept of the music; indeed, they make for a transparent texture, inviting the listener to choose how to listen to its various strands and textures at any given moment. As to dance forms, Minuets conclude five of the sonatas, with the Polonaise, evoking proudly-stepping couples, appearing (Andante alla Polacca) as the second movement of four of the sonatas. All the sonatas are in major keys except for Sonata No.1 in D minor, which the artists have strategically placed as the fifth item on the disc. Following the flowing, busy, spirited opening of Sonata No.1's Allegretto, the Andante presents a scene atypical of the works of this collection - sections of their elegiac, introspective joint playing are punctuated by recitative-type keyboard sections, with Schwarz' solos of an improvisatory- and harmonically audacious nature emerging as spontaneous, as each new moment of musical speculation asks to be probed. Then, whisking away any trace of the enigmatic Andante, the final Allegro takes us back to Friedrich's vibrant, ebullient music, its lengthy phrases enhanced by some inégal playing. 

 

Recorded in February 2023 at the Cobbe Collection Trust, Surrey, UK, a handsome property of the National Trust, this disc provides insight into both the constraints and breadth of Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach's writing in his employ at the court of Count Wilhelm of Schaumberg-Lippe. Enquiring deeply into this very specific repertoire and its cultural background, Jochewed Schwarz (Israel) and Ashley Solomon (UK) present the interplay of two fascinating period instruments, creating much interest for the listener. Recorded for the Meridian label, the CD's natural, clean sound zeroes in on the artists' mindfulness of fine detail, highlighting their understanding of the personal character of the music. 

Sheer delight!

 

Jochewed Schwarz & Ashley Solomon (Luisa Salomon)