Иоганн Готлиб Гольдберг: Избранные сонаты 1751-56

Иоганн Готлиб Гольдберг: Избранные сонаты 1751-56 Johann Gottlieb Goldberg (1727-1756) might just be the most famous composer whose music remains largely unheard. Goldberg had an exceptional gift for reading music, easily reading it even from upside-down notes. From an early age, his performance was distinguished by passion and testified to a talent for improvisation. Born in the family of Johann Goldberg, a violin maker, and Concordia Witting on March 14, 1727, he was baptized in the Church of St. Mary in Danzig, the Kingdom of Prussia (today Gdańsk in Poland). Goldberg probably took lessons from Johann Freislich, cantor of St. Mary’s church. Goldberg’s talent was noticed by Count Hermann Karl von Keyserling, a Russian diplomat who took Goldberg from Gdansk to Dresden as a personal musician. Goldberg remained with Count Keyserling until around 1745 and disappeared from the historical record until around 1750. Goldberg joined the musical establishment of Count Heinrich von Brühl as Court Chamber Musician in Dresden in 1751, where he would remain until his premature death from tuberculosis. This is the period in which Goldberg composed most of his sonatas. Goldberg, a child prodigy, has become almost a household term, thanks to Bach’s masterpiece, popularly known as the “Goldberg” Variations. J.G. Goldberg was a virtuoso on the keyboard from a young age. Unfortunately, not much is known about his life, and the allegation that he was a pupil of old Bach in Leipzig is not yet confirmed. It was Bach’s eldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann, who called Goldberg his pupil, and that seems far more likely. Due to his early death from tuberculosis (dying in the year of Mozart’s birth), Goldberg’s extant oeuvre is very small. It includes two cantatas, four trio sonatas (3 of them in this video), a sonata in four parts, two preludes and fugues, and 24 polonaises for harpsichord. Two sonatas for flute, violin, and basso continuo are lost, as are chorale preludes for organ. Sonata in C minor, for 2 violins, viola and b.c., DürG 14 Performed by Giuliano Carmignola (violin), playing a Venetian violin from 1733 by Pietro Guarneri; M. Brunello (cello), playing cello from the early 1600s by Amati; Accademia dell’Annunciata / R. Doni 1. 00:00:00 Largo, Sonata in C minor 2. 00:02:40 Allegro, Sonata in C minor 3. 00:06:05 Grave, Sonata in C minor 4. 00:07:52 Giga, Sonata in C minor Trio Sonata in A minor, DürG 11 A perfect example of a work that pays tribute to the different fashions of the time. The opening movement is written in the galant idiom, whereas the second movement is a three-part fugue. The last movement is a specimen of the Sturm und Drang and includes some notable harmonic progressions. Performed by E. Sviridov (violin) & Ludus Instrumentalis, baroque ensemble. 5. 00:11:28 Adagio, A minor 6. 00:13:56 Allegro, A minor 7. 00:15:56 Alla siciliana, A minor 8. 00:19:06 Allegro assai, A minor Sonata in F minor, for two violins and continuo Performed by A. Röhrig (violin), Ursula Bundles (violin) & Musica Alta Ripa, baroque ensemble. 9. 00:25:45 Adagio, F minor 10. 00:27:59 Allegro, F minor 11. 00:30:21 Largo, F minor 12. 00:32:41 Allegro ma non tanto, F minor Trio Sonata in B flat major, DürG 10 In this Sonata, Goldberg goes some steps further. It ends with a ciacona, which is harmonically very unsettling, to the point that the listener can lose their sense of key. Performed by Ludus Instrumentalis, a baroque ensemble. 13. 00:34:37 Adagio, B flat major 14. 00:37:10 Allegro, B flat major 15. 00:39:41 Grave, B flat major 16. 00:40:23 Ciacona, B flat major Scholarship has not established a chronology for Goldberg’s surviving works, as Goldberg himself was apparently a “melancholic and stubborn eccentric”, who is said to have destroyed his own scores when they didn’t meet his exacting standards, and he was clearly unwilling to drift into the fashionable Galant styles that were taking over by the mid-18th century. These Sonatas are genuine chamber music works, with significant parts for each instrument. The most famous Sonata in C minor DüR 14 adds a viola to the two violins and basso continuo to create an almost orchestral feel, the intricacy of the counterpoint in the second movement Allegro being quite breathtaking, but the work itself is a delight from beginning to end.