TIMES OF TRANSITION

Cello concertos by C.P.E. Bach and Haydn


C.P.E. Bach: Cello Concerto in A major, H.439, Wq. 172 (1753)
J. Haydn: Cello Concerto in C major, Hob.VIIb:1 (1761-65)
J. Haydn: Cello Concerto in D major, Hob.VIIb:2 (1783)

"The word "transition" is popular in art history when forms of expression change, and it sounds dramatic, but it rarely is. In the Baroque era, polyphony and fugue were paramount, but melody with accompaniment was an equal form of expression that only slowly replaced polyphony. And in times of transition, labels are of little use, as baroque and classicism can coexist in the same composer. But since historians value order and archive drawers, we are easily tempted to think of style terms as something the music itself has created, when in fact they are simply a way of dealing with it. The three cello concertos on this CD shed light on the long, prolific period in the latter half of the 18th century, when the typical stylistic features of the Baroque were gradually supplanted by the simple, so-called gallant style."
Karl Aage Rasmussen

Reviews:
"Another smash hit from Concerto Copenhagen"
Jeppe Rønnow, Magasinet Klassisk, September 2021

"Breathtakingly beautiful"
The Strad, October 2021

Performers:
Andreas Brantelid - cello (Emil Hjort, Copenhagen 1887 with gut strings)

Concerto Copenhagen:
Oboe: Antoine Torunczyk, Lars Henriksson
Bassoon: Jane Gower
Horn: Emmanuel Frankenberg, Renske Wijma
Violin I: Fredrik From, Peter Spissky, Alison Luthmers
Violin II: Hannah Tibell, Jesenka Balic Zunic, Gabriel Bania/Jens Solgaard
Viola: Antina Hugosson
Cello: Tom Pitt
Double bass: Megan Adie
Harpsichord and musical direction: Lars Ulrik Mortensen

The album was released on Naxos on 27.08.2021