Handel: Works For Viola Da Gamba And Harpsichord

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Cat No: FHR91

Release Date: 24 April 2020

Label: First Hand Records

Packaging Type: Jewel Case

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 5060216344591

Genres: Classical Baroque

Description

The new album by Ibrahim Aziz (viola da gamba) and Masumi Yamamoto (harpsichord) features works by Handel including the premiÃ¨re recording of the Kassel Sonata No. 5. This is the first time a whole album of Handel featuring viola da gamba has been published.
George Frideric Handel is regarded as one of the greatest composers of the baroque era, known especially for his operas, oratorios, concertos and keyboard works. His chamber works include a fine selection of solo and trio sonatas with basso continuo, written for a variety of instruments such as the violin, recorder and transverse flute. In Handel's lifetime, the viola da gamba (or viol, as it is also known), was highly regarded in some parts of Europe and Handel featured the instrument in numerous works.
In the eighteenth century, the practice of transcribing music originally written for a different instrument was common. Included in this album are several transcriptions of works of Handel's, as well as pieces which are attributed to him such as the Sonata in C major with Obbligato Harpsichord and a sonata from a recently unearthed collection called the Kassel Sonatas, which here is a premiÃ¨re recording.
Described by the American Record Guide as a musician whose fine tone and technique are coupled with feeling and power, Ibrahim Aziz specialises in the performance of baroque, renaissance and contemporary music for the viola da gamba. His dÃ©but solo album, Risonanze (FHR83), featuring old and new music for the instrument, has received favourable reviews from around the world from both specialist and mainstream critics. Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Aziz studied the viol in London at Trinity Laban (formerly Trinity College of Music) under Alison Crum. A multi award-winning student, he has since travelled the world working and collaborating with various musicians and artists including soprano Dame Emma Kirkby, harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, and Sir David Attenborough. He has performed in prestigious venues and festivals including the BBC Proms, Wigmore Hall, the Dewan Filharmonik Pxetronas, the York and Brighton Early Music festivals, and George Town Festival in Malaysia. Ibrahim Aziz has recorded with Chelys Consort of Viols, Charivari AgrÃ©able and the Rose Consort of Viols in over a dozen albums for the BIS, Delphian, Signum, Deux-Elles and Resonus Classics labels.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM
''The playing is beautiful, with some wonderfully poignant gamba sounds from Aziz, who also displays a deft virtuosity on the instrument, while Yamamoto provides an impressively responsive accompanimentâ€¦ This is a thought-provoking and musically very satisfying CD.' (Early Music Review)
Aziz's previous FHR album 'Risonanze' (FHR83) also received much critical acclaim.
'This is a recording to be reckoned with' (American Record Guide)"
'This is a delightfully varied CD, demonstrating the full and varied potential of the gamba in the hands of a capable and wonderfully gifted young player.' (Early Music Review)
"Ibrahim Aziz and Masumi Yamamoto capture the fusion of vigour and melancholy of the D minor work, while Yamamoto's reading of the E minor work for solo harpsichordâ€¦brings together rigorous fugal playing, graceful embellishments and wistful lyricism. Lovely, too, are the ruminative preludesâ€¦" â€“ BBC Music Magazine
Tracklisting