Harpsichord

“Hantaï rivets your attention by way of impeccable pacing, purposeful ornamentation, subtle registrations, and a brain in every finger.”
– ArkivMusic

Bach’s biographer Forker describes the importance of the partitas for the harpsichord in his pioneering book, written in 1802: “This work caused quite a sensation among his contemporaries in the world of music; such splendid keyboard compositions had never previously been seen or heard. Whoever learnt to perform any of these pieces to a high standard could make his fortune in the world”. Pierre Hantaï has been exploring Bach’s keyboard repertoire since his youth, and will expose all the layers of expression in partitas 6, 3 and 2.

Programme
Partita nr. 6 in e, BWV 830
Partita nr. 3 in a, BWV 827
Partita nr. 2 in c, BWV 8269

When
Saturday 12.02.2022 – 20.00 AMUZ

Festival
BACHSUITESinPRIMETIME

12 February, 2022 20:00

Lute

“Jakob Lindberg triumphs in some of the most demanding music in the repertoire … They are the most technically demanding lute pieces of their age, yet he surmounts their inherent difficulties splendidly.”
– BBC Music Magazine

Bach composed several famous works for the lute after inspiring meetings in 1739 with the greatest lute players of the age, Silvius Leopold Weiss and Johann Kropfgans. Partita 1006a was probably composed for Weiss, as an adaptation of the Violin Partita 1006. Lute players had their own form of musical notation that was better suited to their instrument: tabulature. Suite BWV 997, for example, has been handed down to us in a tabulature by Bach’s friend Christian Weyrauch. That suite is not an adaptation of an earlier composition, but one that was originally composed for the lute.

Programme
Suite in e, BWV 996
Partita in c, BWV 997
Suite in g, BWV 995

When
Sunday 13.02.2022 – 11.00 AMUZ

Festival
BACHSUITESinPRIMETIME

13 February, 2022 11:00

Traverso | Harpsichord

“ Maar vooral Anna Besson wekt bewondering op. Haar traversoklank heeft iets verslavends: lieflijk en tegelijk meedogenloos, nu eens berustend, dan weer verlangend.” (****)
– De Standaard

”Tout autre type de personnalité et de technique avec la Russe Sofya Gandilyan, dont la virtuosité moscovite sert une nature généreuse et inspirée.”
– La Libre

The partita for traverso is the only solo work that Bach composed for the instrument, probably after 1723. It is a particularly virtuoso piece, in which Bach explores every possibility of the instrument. It does not give the flautist a single moment to pause for breath; the musician has to use the entire range of notes and execute extraordinary feats of fingering. Again, we do not know for whom Bach composed the piece, but he may have been inspired by his meeting with the virtuoso flautist Pierre Gabriel Buffardin in Dresden. The partita is more than a study for the ambitious traverso player: it is an expressive work that demands great musicality from the soloist.

From 1702 until 1707, Bach was the organist at the New Church in Arnstadt. The young musician was reprimanded for confusing parishioners with his overly complex overtures and accompaniments. However the two overtures for harpsichord that Bach composed in that period are bathed in a French atmosphere of unabashed elegance. Another piece that is just as French but with grander intentions is the Overture in the French style, BWV 831. Bach included the piece in his second book of Clavier-Übungen, published in 1735. The overture with French dances is a study that explores the creative and technical possibilities of the suite as a genre. The Echo is striking, as a closing movement that is both a musical echo of the earlier parts of the piece and a play of dynamic contrasts made possible by playing the suite on a harpsichord with two manuals.

Programme
traverso
Partita in a, BWV 1013

harpsichord
Ouverture in Franse stijl in b, BWV 831
Ouverture in F, BWV 820
Ouverture in g, BWV 822

When
Sunday 13.02.2022 – 14.00 AMUZ

Festival
BACHSUITESinPRIMETIME

13 February, 2022 14:00

Cello

“In elk geval is wat Jean-Guihen Queyras doet zo overdonderend welsprekend en virtuoos dat het nauwelijks wederwoord toelaat.”
– De Morgen

Jean-Guihen Queyras is taking on the second concert of famous cello suites. These masterpieces have been haunting the cellist for years. His lessons with Anner Bylsma were a determining influence on his interpretation, as was his collaboration with the choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. As a result, his interpretation is more rhythmic and free, and easier to dance to. However Bach also transcends the dance. Like Emmanuelle Bertrand, Queyras gives each suite a character of its own; the works are an ode to life.

Programme
Suite nr. 4 in Es, BWV 1010
Suite nr. 5 in c, BWV 1011
Suite nr. 6 in D, BWV 1012

When
Sunday 13.02.2022 – 16.30 AMUZ

Festival
BACHSUITESinPRIMETIME

13 February, 2022 16:30

El Jubilate

Burning desires, passions and sins: the art of the Iberian Mediterranean is characterised by contrasts between fervour and devotion. Cantoría (in an extended ensemble of vocalists and instrumentalists) shows how carnal desire and religious devotion merge in the polyphonic repertoire of the 15th and 16th centuries. Cantoría was selected for the International Young Artist’s Presentation during Laus Polyphoniae 2017. According to Early Music Reviews, “They displayed exceptional musical and technical skill, with a commendable purity and stability of tone and intonation, making for perfect harmony.”

Programme
Music by D. Ortiz, M. Flecha ‘El Viejo’, J. del Enzina, A. Cabezón, F. Guerrero, J. Vásquez, L. de Milán and others

Performers
Inés Alonso, soprano | Victoria Cassano, alt | Valentín Miralles, bass | Pablo FitzGerald, lute | Marc de la Linde, viol | Joan Seguí, organ | Jorge Losana, tenor & artistic direction

When
Friday 25.02.2022 – 20:00 AMUZ

25 February, 2022 20:00

The Times 2022

Young composers between 12 and 20 years old get the chance to have their music performed by a professional ensemble on a concert stage at AMUZ. The most interesting pieces sent in will be performed by HERMESensemble at this closing concert. Previous editions of The Times & The Times They are A-Changin’ have proved that an exercise of this kind can produce fantastic results. Come and experience it this year for yourself!

Performers
HERMESensemble | Bram Van Camp, Axelle Kennes, coach

In cooperation with
HERMESensemble & De Veerman

Sunday 27 February 2022 – 15.00 AMUZ

27 February, 2022 15:00