The second album of La Dada after their immensely successful record entitled "Corelli & Company". On their first first album, the program was built around Corelli and the influence he had on his contemporaries. The present record is devoted to an earlier period and shows the development of the sonata form in 16th and 17th century Italy. All of these works have been written for virtuosi, and the members of the renowned ensemble La Dada are just that: Han Tol, who plays a great variety of recorders, David Mings on an original dulcian, the predecessor of the bassoon, and keyboard virtuoso Patrick Ayrton on harpsichord as well as organ. This is an absolutely fascinating program with many pieces that have never been recorded before, while the others are also very rare to find. The combination of instruments wilh the dulcian as a melody instrument as well, makes it another unique item which will certainly appeal to baroque music lovers everywhere!
"La Dada" is the title of a composition by the Italian composer Tarquinio Merula from the year 1637. As is often the case with music from this period, it is not clear what "La Dada" exactly means. Like many of his contemporaries, Merola was a composer who has fallen into oblivion. He worked in an era where unheard-of developments took place: the "invention" of the violin, the composing of the first purely instrumental music... Merula found himself in the good company of people such as Monteverdi, Frescobaldi, Gabrieli, Stradivari, Amati, Bernini and countless others. The quality of this incredible music led to the foundation in 1984 of the Ensemble La Dada, with the aim of mapping out and unearthing as many manuscripts and old prints as possible and presenting the ultimate result of all this on the concert platform.
Fascinerende Italiaanse barokmuziek door virtuozen
La Dada is de titel van een compositie van de Italiaanse componist Tarquinio Merula uit het jaar 1637. Zoals vaak het geval is met muziek uit deze periode, is het niet duidelijk wat La Dada precies betekent. Net als een groot aantal van zijn tijdgenoten was Merola een componist die in de vergetelheid is geraakt. Hij werkte in een tijdperk waarin ongehoorde ontwikkelingen plaatsvonden zoals de ‘uitvinding’ van de viool en het componeren van de eerste, puur instrumentale muziek. Merula bevond zich in goed gezelschap van mensen als Monteverdi, Frescobaldi, Gabrieli, Stradivari, Amati, Bernini en talloze anderen.
De kwaliteit van deze geweldige muziek leidde tot de oprichting van het ensemble La Dada in 1984, met het doel om zoveel mogelijk manuscripten en oude prints op te graven en in kaart te brengen, het onderzoeken van specifieke technieken en het presenteren van het ultieme resultaat van dit alles op het concertpodium. La Dada heeft op grote festivals gespeeld in onder andere Boston, Berlijn, Rome, Frankfurt, Nurnberg, Amsterdam, Utrecht en Den Haag.
Dit album is opgedragen aan een vroegere periode en laat de ontwikkeling van de sonatevorm zien in het 16e en 17e eeuwse Italië. Alle werken op deze opname zijn geschreven voor virtuozen zoals de leden van La Dada: Han Tol, die een grote verscheidenheid aan recorders speelt; David Mings op een originele dulciaan, de voorganger van de fagot, en pianovirtuoos Patrick Ayrton zowel op klavecimbel als orgel. Een absoluut fascinerend album met een groot aantal stukken die nooit eerder waren opgenomen, terwijl de andere bijna niet te vinden zijn. De combinatie van deze instrumenten met de dulciaan als melodie instrument zorgt voor dit unieke album dat zeker in de smaak zal vallen bij barokmuziek liefhebbers.
The fact that Josquin Desprez would turn out to be one of the most influential composers of the Renaissance, is partly due to the many praises by Martin Luther. Luther saw Josquin's music as the perfect example of how to express text musically while maintaining the intended meaning. If you listen to Josquin's music, you will know what Luther meant. His motets are particularly appealing and engaging.
His popularity led a large number of publishers to publish music with Josquin's name on it, even though it wasn't composed by him at all, as this would undoubtedly generate better sales. Unfortunately, this meant that nowadays it is not always clear which works are written by him, and which are not... His authentic works, however, can be distinguished by their remarkable clarity, ingenuity and depth. Some highlights are his motets Miserere mei, Stabat Mater, his famous Ave Maria, Ut Phoebi Radiis, and his lamentation after the death of Johannes Ockeghem (La Déploration).
Girolamo Frescobaldi was an Italian composer and organist of the Renaissance and Early Baroque. In 1608 he was named organist of the St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, after he visitied the Southern Netherlands in 1607-1608, in particular Brussels and Antwerp. From 1628 to 1933, he worked for the court of Ferdinand II of Tuscany, after which he resided back in Rome.
His most popular work is his Fiori Musicali (1635), which is a collection of largely liturgical organ compositions to perform during mass. Johann Sebastian Bach owned a self-transcribed copy of this collection. Furthermore, Frescobaldi composed ricercars, canzones, toccatas (both for organ and harpsichord), four-part fantasies, madrigals, motets, and two masses for two four-voiced choirs and B.C.
Frescobaldi's influence on keyboard music has been substantial. This was realised by his many publications (which were under his published under his own supervision) as well as the many young musicians he trained. The most important of which of composer Johann Jakob Froberger, who eventually became the organist at the court of the Emperor in Vienna.
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