Georg Friedrich Händel (1685-1759): Concerti Grossi Opus III & Opus VI

12 CONCERTI GROSSI, Op. VI 00:00 Concerto No 1 in G: A tempo giusto - Allegro - Adagio - Allegro - Allegro 12:50 Concerto No 2 in F: Andante larghetto - Allegro - Largo - Allegro ma non troppo 27:50 Concerto No 3 in E minor: Larghetto - Andante - Allegro - Polonaise: Andante - Allegro ma non troppo 38:51 Concerto No 4 in A minor: Larghetto affettuoso - Allegro - Largo e piano - Allegro 51:16 Concerto No 5 in D: Larghetto e staccato - Allegro - Presto - Largo - Allegro - Minuet: Un poco larghetto 1:06:12 Concerto No 6 in G minor: Largo e affettuoso - A tempo giusto - Musette: Larghetto - Allegro - Allegro 1:23:43 Concerto No 7 in B flat: Largo - Allegro - Largo e piano - Andante - Hornpipe 1:38:46 Concerto No 8 in C minor: Allemande: Andante - Grave - Andante allegro - Adagio - Siciliana: Andante - Allegro 1:52:58 Concerto No 9 in F: Largo - Allegro - Larghetto - Allegro - Minuet: Andante - Gigue: Allegro 2:06:59 Concerto No 10 in D minor: Overture: (Grave), Allegro, Lentement - Air: Lento - Allegro - Allegro - Allegro moderato 2:21:43 Concerto No 11 in A: Andante larghetto e staccato - Allegro - Largo e staccato - Andante - Allegro 2:40:06 Concerto No 12 in B minor: Largo - Allegro - Aria: Larghetto e piano - Largo - Allegro CONCERTI GROSSI, Op. III 2:54:33 Concerto No 1 in B flat: Allegro - Largo - Allegro 3:03:25 Concerto No 2 in B flat: Vivace - Largo - Allegro - Andante - Gavotte 3:16:15 Concerto No 3 in G: Largo e staccato - Allegro - Adagio - Allegro 3:24:22 Concerto No 4b in F: Largo - Allegro - Largo - Allegro 3:35:36 Concerto No 5 in D minor: (Andante) - Fugue: Allegro - Adagio - Allegro ma non troppo - Allegro 3:46:09 Concerto No 6 in D: Vivace - Allegro Jean-François Paillard Chamber Orchestra, Paris - Jean-François Paillard, Conductor Pierre Poulteau & Huguette Ehrmann, Recorders / Jean-Pierre Rampal, Flute Jacques Chambon & Lucien Debray, Oboes Huguette Fernandez & Ginette Carles, Violins / Bernard Fonteny, Cello Anne-Marie Beckensteiner, Harpsichord Without any doubt, the Concerto Grosso is one of the most typical creations of the Baroque in music. Like all Baroque art, it is based essentially on contrast, contrast of timbres and nuances obtained by opposing two or more instrumental “choirs” of different make-up and by utilization of echo effects; contrast of tempi in the alternation of slow and fast sections; contrasts in style between fugal ‘da chiesa” writing, rhythmic homophonic writing derived from the dance, accompanied melody in imitation of the recitative and the operatic aria, and, finally, improvisation of purely instrumental character reserved for the soloists. All this already existed in germinal form in the Sacrae Symphoniae of Gabrieli (1597). However, the great era of the concerto grosso lasted but a few decades. It began by establishing a well-defined type that opposed the concertino of the soloists, most often following the lines of the trio sonata (two violins, cello and harpsichord), to the grosso, that is the mass of orchestral musicians called ripieni. This type, already present in the works of Stradella before 1680, was codified by Corelli whose Opus 6 was published only in 1714, after his death, but parts of it date back as far as 1682. This was the beginning of a magnificent flowering, the masters of which were Albinoni, Bonporti, Marcello, Locatelli, Geminiani, Muffat, etc. But very soon another tendency came to light with Torelli and Vivaldi: the adoption of the tripartite structure of the sinfonia, which points the way to the symphony, abandonment of the concertino in favor of a single soloist and virtuoso writing. Bach made a significant contribution to this evolution. His Brandenburg Concertos already have no more than a very slight rapport with the Corellian type, which the first manifestations of the style galant were to eliminate once and for all. Thus, Opus VI by Handel, which appeared in 1740, is at the same time the crowning glory and the final point of the apogee of the species.