Violin - the voice and soul of the baroque
The birth of the most perfect instrument...
In the mid 16th century, when Brescian craftsmen were creating the first violins, the beauty of the
instrument was as important as its voice and because of this its form has naturally come to be compared with the shape of a woman!
From humble beginnings...
Not that this instrument was intended for the upper classes. Noblemen played genteel instruments
like the lute or the viola da gamba and only lesser mortals who had to earn their living
(professionals) played the violin, and then mostly only to accompany dancing, weddings, feast
days or parties.
The instrumental queen of the baroque arose...
Like any woman, the beauty and expressive potential of the violin grew with time and within 150 years had become an integral part of any court or church musical establishment. No longer was it only accompanying dance and song, but an instrumental queen with her own court of composers.
Programme
Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644 - 1704)
- Passacaglia
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)
- Partita No.1 in B minor, BWV 1002 for solo violin (1720)
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681 - 1767)
- Fantasia VII in Eflat
Penelope Spencer - violin
Listening Guides Sample
