C.P.E. Bach: Cello Concertos

Album review

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach was Johann Sebastian Bach’s second and most successful son. He was a transitional figure between the Baroque and the Classicism, and greatly influenced Mozart and Beethoven, partly thanks to his keyboard sonatas. In the 18th century, the cello concerto was still a fairly new genre, and Boccherini and Haydn had not yet written their contributions at the point when C.P.E. Bach completed his, the three concertos written between 1750 and 1753. The tempestuous drama of the openings and the carefree candour of the finales stand in stark contrast to the tenderness and emotional depth of the slow parts.
The renowned Belgian cellist Roel Dieltiens and the legendary Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century reveal themselves to be born raconteurs, turning this music into fascinating, colourful stories. The edition includes a beautiful essay by the popular novelist Anna Enquist, a long-time friend of the Orchestra and of the late Frans Brüggen, in which she takes her experience visiting the recording sessions of this album in Amsterdam as a departure point to explore the musical personality of Carl Philipp Emanuel, especially when seen in relation to his father’s “œuvre”. © Glossa