Pitched At 415 & Set In Werkmeister III Temperament
Sunday, December 15, 2013
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| Byron Schenkman taking delivery of his Craig Tomlinson harpsichord |
It is not often that one can go to a beautiful
home to listen to beautiful baroque music being played on a brand new Italian
Style harpsichord by an accomplished and erudite harpsichord player. His name
is Byron Schenkman.
And it is not often that one gets to listen to an Italian baroque composer whose name does not end in an i. If you take a peek at tonight’s programme note that's composer Ana Bon di Venezia. Of her my Seville grandmother would have said, “En su casa la conocen.” (They know who she is in her home.)
And it is not often that one gets to listen to an Italian baroque composer whose name does not end in an i. If you take a peek at tonight’s programme note that's composer Ana Bon di Venezia. Of her my Seville grandmother would have said, “En su casa la conocen.” (They know who she is in her home.)
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| Craig Tomlinson |
While her music was most pleasant and according
to Schenkman it had a definitive air of Vivaldi as she took lessons (she paid
we were told) in his Venetian school, Ospedale della Pietà I was particularly
enamoured by another Italian of whose existence was unknown to me until
tonight. That would be Domenico Zipoli who by the time of his death was only
38. In 1726 the man who had studied for a short time under Alessandro Scarlatti
went to Seville
and from there to Córdoba in what was then the Virreynato del Río de la Plata. He
was made a Jesuit but never became a priest as there was no bishop to ordain
him. He worked with the Guraní Indians in Paraguay and died of an unknown disease
back in Córdoba.
Since the Jesuits of his time promoted the
idea that the Guaranís should grow and harvest Ilex paraguariensis from which mate
is made and brewed I am certain that both Zipoli and I indulged at length in
the refreshing hot drink!
Going back to the purpose of this blog
which is to rave about a wonderful concert of new music. New because while I
may have heard or know a tad about
Frescobaldi, Purcell and Bach, all the pieces were new to me with the
exception of one of the Bourées in the Back Suite in A Minor BWV 807. Of the
Bourée I know since I have a 1964 recording of the Swingle Singers where they
sing that very piece.
Much is said and written about new music. But
music that you have never heard, heard for the first time on an instrument that
is brand new is music that almost redefines what new music is.
And when you add to that the intimate
surroundings of a salon that happens to be a living room of the Schenkman's harpsichord maker, there is something
even more special. And I must mention all the goodies to be found in Tomlinson's wife Carol's kitchen after the performance.
Byron Schenkman has in the few concerts I
have had the luck to hear him play convinced me (he changed my mind in fact as
I used to hate the harpsichord and considered it an inconsequential instrument
about as useful as the triangle) that indeed it is a wonderful instrument with
many possibilities in spite of not having a piano’s pedals. I like Schenkman’s
Glen Gould style of playing, with face close to keyboard and sitting on the
edge of his chair. When you combine his erudition with his enthusiasm (and he
played without sheet music) you may understand why I have converted.
Byron Schenkman’s new harpsichord, made by
our Canadian treasure, Craig Tomlinson, is of the Italian Style. This means
that all the metallic works including the strings are all made of brass. While
I am no expert on these matters Tomlinson has told me that the sound of an
Italian Style harpsichord is special because of its brass works. Since Tomlinson somehow manages to convince those who pick up their new instruments to play in his salon, I can attest to the lively sound of this harpsichord.
There is something that Schenkman might not
have noticed. This is that his harpsichord while it was being built in
Tomlinson’s workshop, shared a space with a very large motorcycle.
That reminds me of an article (yes article)
I read in a Penthouse Magazine back in the early 80s. In the story a Hollywood
agent hires a man who has a time machine to bring Domenico Scarlatti to the
present in Los Angeles.
The agent thinks he will make tons of money promoting Scarlatti as a composer
and player of the virtuoso harpsichord. Unfortunately, Scarlatti abandons his
harpsichord, drops out, and takes up with a rock band and is mesmerized by a
Moog synthesizer.
If instruments should have souls and
Tomlison’s instruments most certainly must have them, then this particular
Italian Style harpsichord just might …
