Chamber Music by C.P.E. Bach

Chamber Music by C.P.E. Bach - period instruments: Saturday 6 February 2027, 16:00–17:00, Koncertkapellet, Roskilde. Tickets cost 110–135 kr.

This concert celebrates the chamber music of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, son of the world-renowned Johann Sebastian Bach. The works are performed on authentic instruments following historical performance practice, with an unusual ensemble: traverso flute, viola, and fortepiano. Can a quartet be played with only three musicians? Can a viola carry the melody? And what does a piano from the 1780s sound like? The audience will find answers when three quartets for traverso flute, viola, and fortepiano are performed. They rank among the last works Bach composed before his death.

Carl Philipp Emanuel was the second-eldest son of the celebrated Johann Sebastian Bach. With the 'Galant Style', the quartets occupy the transition between Baroque and Classical, and the music represents a clear reaction against the strict constraints of the Baroque. Even to modern ears, it sounds free, surprising, and innovative.

The instruments reflect the same development. The fortepiano emerged as a middle ground between the harpsichord, the preferred keyboard instrument of the High Baroque, and the modern piano. In sound it resembles a modern piano, but without pedals. It can express far more dynamic nuances than the harpsichord, yet its tone is more delicate than a modern piano. The flute was known as a melody instrument, while the viola in an equally prominent melodic role was highly unusual. Although Bach's works remain popular, it is rare to hear them on original instruments. Here the audience experiences a sound that transports them back to the Berlin music salons of the 1780s.

Program:
Quartet in A minor, Wq 93, Quartet in D major, Wq 94, and Quartet in G major, Wq 95.

Performers: Mai Kamstrup Mogensen on traverso flute, Georgina McKay Lodge on viola, and Yuko Inoue on fortepiano.