Baldassarre Galuppi: Concerti a Quattro [Import]

Galuppi is known primarily for his operas. His entry into 'pure' instrumental music brings fascinating and somewhat unexpected results. Speaking generally, these concerti combine archaic compositional elements into a kind of Italianate 'sturm und drang' expressiveness. The harmony is constantly shifting and moving in unexpected and surprising directions in a manner that reminded me of C.P.E. Bach and his adventurous and creative works. What is especially neat about this is Galuppi's methods. He is expert at counterpoint, and uses imitative counterpoint throughout the music, giving it an austere and evocative character that is quite absorbing to the ear and mind. The craftsmanship and effort is superb and Galuppi clearly put serious effort into crafting music that would be lasting and admired by musicians as well as non performing music lovers.

The performing group, Ensemble il Falcone is adept enough and alert to the subtleties in the music. In music that has constant rising and falling motives, long phrases and complex harmonic schemes, it can be a severe challenge to remain alert to the logic that underpins and combines all of these complex elements and emerge with a cogent musical argument. The musicians rise to the occasion very well in these regards and are sympathetic to the force and spirit that makes this music unique and so interesting. I have to point out that this is one of those cases where 'original' instruments can sound edgy and acidic at times. You have to make allowances for this and adjust or it can become an impedement to fully enjoy the music. This is a sound and timbre issue only and generally only in the violin in the higher register. In the moments where the music becomes denser and all the players are more active, the edginess dissapates and the sound mellows very well. Those familiar with 'period' instrument recordings know that sound engineers and musicians have found ways to sound very sweet and light and for whatever reasons, this is not one of those results. Still, this music can be enjoyed greatly. It is up to the listener whether he can accept or adjust to the occasional acidic phrase. If this is not a problem then I would contend that this recording has much to give. Listen to the excerpts two or three times and to find out if the sound is ok for you.

The music lover who relishes Baroque and early Classical music that has real substance will find much to revel in here. If you are unfamiliar with shifting, unexpected harmonies and resolutions this music might be somewhat severe - this is not Pachelbel's canon. Also check out the sound samples to hear the period instruments in their different ranges and combinations because it can be challenging. So with those mild caveats out of the way, I strongly recommend this very creative and interesting result of Galuppi's step away from opera and into pure music.

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