Carlo Antonio CAMPIONI (1720-1788)
6 Harpsichord Sonatas Op 4B
Sonata No 1 in A [7:05]
Sonata No 2 in E [8:57]
Sonata No 3 in D [16:09]
Sonata No 4 in G [11:34]
Sonata No 5 in C [13:41]
Sonata No 6 'col Violino obbligato' in G [16:53]
Simone Stella (harpsichord), Valerio Losito (violin)
rec. 2019, Stella Recording Studio, Florence, Italy
BRILLIANT CLASSICS 95997 [74:29]
Lovers of pre-romantic keyboard music have every reason to be grateful to Brilliant Classics for releasing so many recordings of music by composers who musicologists like to call 'minor masters', or have even remained completely under the radar. A substantial number of such recordings concern music by Italian composers from the late 16th to the late 18th centuries. The present disc is a good example: looking at ArkivMusic I found just one disc which includes a single piece of chamber music by Campioni. Otherwise nothing of his output seems to be available on disc. Until the release of the Brilliant Classics recording under review here, that is. Simone Stella, one of the most prolific performers of baroque keyboard music, who has made quite a number of recordings for this label, turned to his six sonatas Op 4B.
Campioni was of French birth; he was born Charles Antoine Campion in
Lunéville (Meurthe-et-Moselle, in the Lorraine region in France). Here he
may have been a student of Henry Desmarest, who at the time was the director
of the music at court. When the Duke of Lorraine succeeded to the grand duchy of Tuscany and the court moved to Tuscany around 1737, the Campion family may have followed. Campioni seems to have been in close contact with Tartini; he was known as an excellent violinist, and the violin plays a key role in his instrumental oeuvre. By 1752 he was maestro di cappella at Livorno Cathedral; from 1763 until his death he was maestro di cappella to the grand duke in Florence, where he also served at the cathedral of S Maria del Fiore and at the oratory of S Giovanni Battista.
Two things about Campioni are particularly interesting. First, he had a strong interest in 'ancient music'. Charles Burney, who met him in 1770, reports that Campioni owned a large collection of early music, "particularly madrigals from the 16th and 17th centuries". He shared this passion wih 'Padre' Giovanni Battista Martini, with whom he had a regular correspondence. He also studied treatises from the late 16th century. Second, his music found much appreciation, and was printed in Amsterdam, Paris and London. The sonatas which are the subject of this disc are just one example. They have come down to us in two printed editions of 1763, one by Robert Bremner in London and a second by M. de La Chevardiere in Paris. A third source is a manuscript copy dated 1790, which is part of the library of the University of Kentucky, USA.
These six sonatas are each different in structure. Four comprise two movements in a fast tempo: allegro or allegretto. However, the second movement of the Sonata No 1 is a giga, which is quite remarkable, as this dance was part of baroque suites and seldom used in later periods. Another piece which is reminiscent of the baroque era is the opening movement of the Sonata No 3, which entirely consists of arpeggios and serves as a kind of introduction to the ensuing allegro spiritoso, which does live up to its title, as it is full of good ideas and esprit. The last movement is again unconventional: it is an allegro with the title La Caccia, in which the harpsichord imitates the sound of hunting horns. Again, this can be seen as a relic of the past, not surprising considering Campioni's interest in 'ancient music'.
The last sonata is different in that it is scored for harpsichord and violin. In the third quarter of the 18th century, sonatas for keyboard with an ad libitum part for a melody instrument, mostly a violin, were quite popular across Europe. However, in this case the violin has an obbligato part, which means that it cannot be omitted, and adds something substantial to the musical proceedings. It is a quite brilliant and very well-written piece in three movements: an andante non troppo is followed by two allegros.
These six sonatas are well written and offer quite some variety. As was common practice at the time, the right hand has most of the thematic material, whereas the left hand is largely confined to an accompanying role. We regularly find then common devices, such as Alberti basses and drum basses. However, that does not compromise their quality. As I already indicated, the third sonata and the closing sonata with violin are the two highlights of this set.
Simone Stella makes the most of these pieces. His performances are lively
and energetic, and it is also due to him that there are no dull moments here. He plays two different harpsichords, copies after a French instrument by Hemsch and an Italian harpsichord by Grimaldi, respectively. They clearly differ in sound, which further contributes to the variety in the programme. Valerio Losito delivers an engaging performance of the violin part in the sixth sonata.
This disc is a most pleasant and entertaining acquaintance with the oeuvre of Carlo Antonio Campioni.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
