Thomascantors in dialogue by Thomas Triesschijn

Various composers

Thomas Triesschijn | The Counterpoints XL

Thomascantors in dialogue

Price: € 8.95
Format: CD
Label: Challenge Classics
UPC: 0608917290325
Catnr: CC 72903
Release date: 04 February 2022
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Label
Challenge Classics

UPC
0608917290325

Catalogue number
CC 72903

Release date
04 February 2022

"He can convince you that this is great music. If you're not sure whether you really need a Suite in A minor in your collection, this is definetely one to add."

recorder magazine, 05-9-2022

Album

Artist(s)

Composer(s)

Press

About the album

Thomas Triesschijn: After winning a Dutch radio prize, I thought of realising a long-cherished dream: recording music for solo recorder and orchestra, in particular the famous Ouverture Suite in A minor by Telemann. Taking this piece as a starting point and after doing some research, I stumbled upon the story of the four colleagues - Telemann, Fasch, Graupner and Bach - auditioning for the prestigious position of Thomascantor in Leipzig after the death of Johann Kuhnau in 1722. Through the music on this CD, I invite you to share in a unique story of four dear friends and esteemed colleagues auditioning for the position of cantor at St. Thomas that Bach surprisingly got as fourth (!) choice. This was the position in which he would spend most of his career, composing masterpieces one after another.

De muziek op deze cd gaat over een vreemde auditie in Leipzig in het jaar 1723. De Thomaskirche aldaar, was naarstig op zoek naar een nieuwe cantor. Vier componisten kwamen in aanmerking voor de functie. Blokfluitist Thomas Triesschijn en zijn ensemble de Counterpoints XL verbeelden, met composities voor blokfluit en orkest, een dialoog tussen de gegadigden. Prachtige muziek van een virtuoze blokfluitist.

Na het winnen van de huiskamerchallenge van de Nederlandse radiozender classicnl wilde Thomas Triesschijn een lang gekoesterde droom realiseren: het opnemen van muziek voor soloblokfluit en orkest, in het bijzonder de beroemde Ouverture ‘Suite in a mineur‘ van Telemann. Met dit stuk als uitgangspunt en na wat onderzoek stuitte Triesschijn op het verhaal van de vier collega-componisten.

Na de dood van componist Johann Kuhnau in 1722, deden de vier dierbare vrienden en gewaardeerde collega-componisten Georg Philipp Telemann, Johann Friedrich Fasch, Christoph Graupner en Johann Sebastian Bach, auditie voor de prestigieuze positie van Thomascantor in Leipzig. Om verschillende redenen weigerden drie van hen de functie. Dus viel de keuze op de vierde gegadigde, verrassend genoeg was dat Bach. Hij ging wel in op het aanbod om cantor te worden van de Thomaskirche. Een functie die hij het grootste deel van zijn carrière zou vervullen, terwijl hij het ene na het andere meesterwerk componeerde.

Thomas Triesschijn: Nachdem ich einen niederländischen Radiopreis gewonnen hatte, dachte ich daran, einen lang gehegten Traum zu verwirklichen: Musik für Solo-Blockflöte und Orchester aufzunehmen, insbesondere die berühmte Ouverture Suite in a-Moll von Telemann. Ausgehend von diesem Stück stieß ich nach einigen Recherchen auf die Geschichte der vier Kollegen Telemann, Fasch, Graupner und Bach, die sich nach dem Tod von Johann Kuhnau im Jahr 1722 um die prestigeträchtige Stelle des Thomaskantors in Leipzig bewarben. Durch die Musik auf dieser CD lade ich Sie ein, an der einzigartigen Geschichte von vier lieben Freunden und geschätzten Kollegen teilzuhaben, die für die Stelle des Thomaskantors vorspielten, die Bach überraschenderweise als vierte (!) Wahl erhielt. In dieser Position sollte er den größten Teil seiner Karriere verbringen und ein Meisterwerk nach dem anderen komponieren.

Artist(s)

Thomas Triesschijn (recorder)

Thomas Triesschijn began his musical studies with choral and recorder lessons at the age of seven. Aged 13, he was admitted to the talent programme of the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague to study with Dorothea Winter. After earning a Bachelor of Music, he completed his Master’s degree at the HKU University of the Arts Utrecht with Heiko ter Schegget. In 2010, Thomas was a finalist in the Dutch national finals of the “Eurovision Young Musicians Competition” and appeared on national television as a soloist with Holland Symfonia conducted by Otto Tausk. The year after, Thomas won first prize during the finals of the Princess Christina Competition in Rotterdam. Thomas focuses on the performance of both early and contemporary music. He has...

Thomas Triesschijn began his musical studies with choral and recorder lessons at the age of seven. Aged 13, he was admitted to the talent programme of the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague to study with Dorothea Winter. After earning a Bachelor of Music, he completed his Master’s degree at the HKU University of the Arts Utrecht with Heiko ter Schegget.

In 2010, Thomas was a finalist in the Dutch national finals of the “Eurovision Young Musicians Competition” and appeared on national television as a soloist with Holland Symfonia conducted by Otto Tausk. The year after, Thomas won first prize during the finals of the Princess Christina Competition in Rotterdam.

Thomas focuses on the performance of both early and contemporary music. He has performed all over Europe, the United States and Asia as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral musician, working with ensembles and conductors such as Les Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset, Vox Luminis and Lionel Meunier, Holland Baroque and Daniel Reuss, Opera2Day and Hernán Schvartzman. His performances have taken him to distinguished festivals and stages such as the Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht, Château de Versailles and the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.

Along with his performing activities, Thomas is in international demand as a teacher and juror at music competitions. He is based in Lucerne (Switzerland) where he teaches the recorder at the Musikschule Luzern.

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The Counterpoints XL

Composer(s)

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth. Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

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Georg Philipp Telemann

Georg Philipp Telemann (14 March 1681 – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesheim, Telemann entered the University of Leipzig to study law, but eventually settled on a career in music. He held important positions in Leipzig, Sorau, Eisenach, and Frankfurt before settling in Hamburg in 1721, where he became musical director of the city's five main churches. While Telemann's career prospered, his personal life was always troubled: his first wife died only a few months after their marriage, and his second wife had extramarital affairs and accumulated a large gambling debt before leaving Telemann.
Telemann was one of the most prolific composers in history (at least in terms of surviving oeuvre) and was considered by his contemporaries to be one of the leading German composers of the time—he was compared favorably both to his friend Johann Sebastian Bach, who made Telemann the godfather and namesake of his son Carl Philipp Emanuel, and to George Frideric Handel, whom Telemann also knew personally. Telemann's music incorporates several national styles (French, Italian) and is even at times influenced by Polish popular music. He remained at the forefront of all new musical tendencies and his music is an important link between the late Baroque and early Classical styles.

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Johann Friedrich Fasch

Christoph Graupner

Christoph Graupner was a German Baroque composer and a contemporary of Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel and Philipp Telemann. His music is heartfelt, refined, demanding and innovative. However, he is not as well-known as his contemporaries, since he had very few pupils and he music became inaccessible to the public for a long time after his death.
Graupner began his musical career as harpsichordist in the orchestra of the Hamburg Opera, where he became acquainted with Handel, who played the violin in the same orchestra. He also composed six successful operas in Hamburg.
In 1709, Graupner’s talent was discovered by the music-loving Landgraf Ernst Ludwig of Darmstadt (on the picture), who offered him the position of Kapellmeister at his court. There he was amongst others responsible for the weekly performances of sacred cantatas, of which he composed more than 1400. In 1722, he applied to the function of cantor at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig. The board preferred him above Bach, but he had to decline the offer at the request of the Landgraf, as a result of which Bach was eventually appointed cantor. In a letter to the city council of Leipzig, he expresses his appreciation for Bach, which is an indication of his modesty.
Graupner was modest to the point of requesting that all his music be destroyed after his death, even though they were admired for their excellent calligraphy. Fortunately, the court of Darmstadt obtained the rights over his music, which has therefore been kept in the local university library. Through that decision, Graupner’s oeuvre has survived the ages, but it remained inaccessible to the public for a long time, as a result of which it fell into oblivion until the beginning of the 20th century.

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Press

He can convince you that this is great music. If you're not sure whether you really need a Suite in A minor in your collection, this is definetely one to add.
recorder magazine, 05-9-2022

... as the music speaks eloquently in terms of its excellence, brought to life by Triesschijn and his ensemble. Well worth obtaining.
Fanfare, 01-9-2022

Thomas Triesschijn is a fluent virtuoso and his arrangement of three instrumental movements from two of Bach's cantatas to form a concerto comes over well. The concertos by Graupner and Johann Friedrich Fasch are genuine recorder works and are stlyishly played.
BBC Music Magazine, 01-6-2022

The big winner in this regard is above all the vertical flute enthusiast, who is treated by Trieschijn to equally dedicated and exciting playing in all works, masterfully supported by the other instrumentalists.
Luister, 01-6-2022

Thomas Triesschijn, with his seductive recorder sound, phrases extremely imaginatively and never superficially with virtuosity. He doesn't act as a bold soloist, but proves that he sees himself as an honest ensemble player. A thoroughly captivating recording!
Toccata, 11-3-2022

Thomas Triesschijn is admittedly unknown to the general public. But that will soon change, because whoever delivers such a personal album really has something to say!
Music Frames, 17-2-2022

We can consider ourselves privileged with this baroque ensemble.
De Volkskrant, 10-2-2022

We hear many styles, timbres and playing styles and we find a new world of sound. The result is a phenomenal sample of compositions with the recorder in a starring role – either as an ensemble instrument or as a soloist.
Katholiek Nieuwsblad, 04-2-2022

The Dutch ensemble The Counterpoints XL, expanded here to a small baroque orchestra, not only want to offer you beautiful music by Bach and Telemann on this wonderfully beautiful CD, on their historical instruments or on the best copies thereof, but also to introduce you to the equally brilliant music of their previously unknown contemporaries, Fasch and Graupner.
Stretto, 03-2-2022