SGAMBATI CARAMIELLO LIBETTA - COMPLETE PIANO WORKS 5 CD

SKU/Barcode: 8007194103939

After centuries of keyboard instruments being used solely as accompaniment in chamber music, they finally got the spotlight in the late Baroque and Classical periods when "accompanied sonatas" -- written for keyboard with accompaniment by a violin, flute, and/or cello -- became a popular form of chamber music. Mozart's and Beethoven's violin sonatas were first titled and published as accompanied sonatas. The caliber of the music on this Tactus release doesn't match Mozart or Beethoven, but these Muzio Clementi sonatas demonstrate the accompanied sonata form ably, with good notes explaining why and how it came about, and the move to the more balanced duo sonata form. Violinist Enzo Porta and pianist Carlo Mazzoli begin with an example of the kind of sonata where the keyboard really is the focus of attention and the violin really is just adding highlights. The meat of the program is the three sonatas of Op. 15, "for keyboard and violin" -- a more equal partnership. The difference in how the violin is used is immediate. Not only is the violin part more substantive, but it often shares melodic material with the keyboard or claims it for itself. The Sonata in B flat major, Op. 5/1, is a two-movement, stil galant one, and while the other sonatas become broader in scope of drama, with more tension and interesting writing in development sections, they are not far removed in character from the earlier one (the track listing labels the Op. 5 sonata as a second version from 1807, but it originally dates from around 1780), not as Romantic-leaning as Clementi's later solo piano sonatas. Nor do the parts sound technically challenging to either performer. What Clementi lacks in this music is contrast, and even conflict, between the instruments in terms of textures and emotion, and a concise, clear sense of moving forward in what he's trying to say. Porta and Mazzoli perform on period instruments, Mazzoli using a very late fortepiano from 1830. Porta's intonation isn't always perfect, but the two work together very well, blending articulations and humors to get the most out of the music. Even if these sonatas are not significant in the history of the sonata or violin and piano repertoire, they are not unpleasant to hear, and for those who do have some admiration for Clementi as a composer, they are worth at least one hearing.