The Baroque Bubble
My
relationship with baroque music is developing in a very special way. In my
childhood I listened a lot of this music during the lessons at my music school:
Bach, Handel, Haydn, Vivaldi etc. I liked it especially the most famous
melodies but…I wouldn’t say it moved me very much. So for some time my attitude
to this was kind of «it’s old music».
EMI Classics 2012
Some months
ago I had an amazing experience in rediscovering the beauty of baroque music.
It happened thanks to Joyce DiDonato’s «Drama Queens»! Before that moment I’d
come across her CD too often here or there and I really liked the photo on the
cover to ignore it so long:). So I decided to give it a chance! And I have no
regrets. I suddenly realized how powerful this music could be! It’s not less
emotional than the music of more modern composers! I like all the tracks and I
know all of them by heart! They are rarely recorded arias belonging to various opera
queens! My absolutely favorite is « Sposa, son disprezzata»!!! The melody
is heavenly beautiful!!! I have no words to describe it properly, you have to
listen to it!!! Joyce’s singing is gorgeous, I like listening to her in this
very repertoire. Her voice blossoms here like nowhere else!
After such
a discovery I decided to find other baroque treasures but….they found me
themselves!!!
Pergolesi’s
«Stabat Mater» with Anna Netrebko, Marianna Pizzolato and Antonio Pappano is
one of them! I’ve always loved this piece (I mean «Stabat Mater» itself), many
composers have written it (I personally heard Rossini, Poulenc, others are in
my agenda:)). I think they all put so much soul in it because of the lyrics and
its meaning that by this moment I haven’t been disappointed in anything! I
enjoy the tempo and the emotional state of this particular recording. I’ve been
at the local recital where this piece was performed by a soprano and a
countertenor. «Stabat Mater Dolorosa» is the most significant and beautiful
piece of all. It sets the tone for the rest part of this work. I always have
goose bumps when I hear its first notes!!!
Another
unique work which I certainly wanna recommend is Magdalena Kožena’s CD «Lettere
Amorose». Every track here is an
expression of love in its different variations. My acquaintance with this recording
happened accidentally. I saw it on some fansite and it attracted me with its
cover:) (silly girly thing!:)). And then I just clicked on the play button and I
immediately loved it!!! The arrangement here is fantastic! It’s very unusual to
say it about classical music but it’s a fact! I’ve read that the instrumental
part is performed by «Private Musicke», the ensemble of Pierre Pitzl where the
musicians play plucked and bowed period instruments. The sound is so suitable
for these pieces of 17th century, so to say very medieval! It
creates the proper atmosphere in my mind when I listen to it! I know that the
musicians with Magdalena had been experimenting a lot with their interpretation
of this music before they actually recorded it. My favorite love song is «O bei
lumi», it made me want to hear the rest of the album! All in all we have a
great CD, very unique and interesting which I endlessly love!!!
I have to
say that I’ve begun to appreciate this kind of music for some musical reasons.
You don’t know but I’ve been singing in an academic choir for 17 years and I
was taking vocal lessons for 5 years and even still take them from time to time.
In my case listening to such baroque recordings helps a lot: you can hear very
well how a singer’s breath works and it tunes my ear for a high singing position.
So I personally recommend it very much:).
So I’m
gonna continue the discovery work in this area and maybe let you know about it
someday!
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