New Classical Tracks: Baroque Cross-Pollination

On his new recording titled "Air," British violinist Daniel Hope puts a modern groove in ancient music. The Baroque era was a time of great creativity for violinists and composers who were looking for exciting new ways to be musically expressive. This new release traces the story of some unique composers of that era including Andrea Falconieri and Nicola Matteis, and it shares music from other Baroque composers whose music was cross-pollinated during the cultural exchange that took place during that period.

The recording opens with a chaconne by the Italian lutenist Andrea Falconieri who appeared at several European courts. His writing incorporates musical ideas he collected as he traveled around Portugal and Spain. When they made this recording, Daniel Hope and his colleagues performed each piece in one take, which adds to the lighthearted spontaneity of the music. Percussion instruments also enhance the modern groove of this chaconne.

Nicola Matteis was an Italian violinist who went to London to study in the mid 17th century. It was Matteis who helped English audiences develop a taste for the newer Italian style of violin playing. His reputation as a virtuoso performer quickly grew as he wowed audiences with his amazing technique. That technique is almost cheeky at times - for example on track 6, titled, "Diverse Bizzarrie" (meaning roughly, "Various Oddities"). Matteis believed each performer should play according to his or her fancy, and that's precisely the approach Daniel Hope and his colleagues take on this whimsical piece.

Johann Pachelbel's Canon is a work familiar to most, yet on this new release, you may find yourself listening to it with fresh ears. Daniel Hope takes the Canon at a much quicker pace, and the sparse instrumentation makes it feel more buoyant.

Daniel Hope included three pieces by the German composer Johann Paul von Westhoff on this disc. Westhoff was a master at handling bariolage, a technique that requires the violinist to play all four strings at once. Daniel Hope's performance of Westhoff's piece titled, "Imitazione," is captivating as he demonstrates the advanced technique used by this innovative German composer. It was common in the Baroque era for one composer to transcribe the music of another. That's one reason Daniel Hope included Antonio Valente's Gagliarda. Valente was an organist whose music transcribes beautifully to the violin. Here, Daniel Hope's violin sounds more like a country fiddle.

On this new recording, "Air," the spirit of the music allows violinist Daniel Hope and his musical colleagues to express their own musical personalities. They also master the goal of the musicians of the Baroque era who wanted to please their audiences with music that was lively, witty and interesting.

(This is an encore broadcast of an episode of New Classical Tracks that originally aired on April 13, 2010.)

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