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1 CD -
437 081-2 - (c) 1986
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1 LP -
198 362 - (p) 1966 |
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MUFFAT · BIBER -
Suiten & Sonaten |
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Georg
Muffat (1653-1704) |
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Suite VIII:
Indissolubilis Amicitia (aus Florilegium
II, 1698)
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16'
30" |
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Violine, Violetta
(Tenor-Viola), Viola (Tenor-Viola
da gamba), Bass-Viola da gamba;
Continuo: Violone, Baß-Viola da
gamba, Cembalo |
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- Ouverture |
4'
29" |
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- Les Courtisans |
1'
22" |
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- Rondeau |
2'
28" |
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- Les Gendarmes |
0'
51" |
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- Les Bossus
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1'
03" |
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- Gavotte |
1' 05" |
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- Sarabande pour le
Génie de l'Amitié |
1' 57" |
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- Gigue |
1' 35" |
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- Menuet |
1' 50" |
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Concerto I; Bona
Nova (aus Exquisitioris
harmoniae instrumentalis
gravi-jucundae, 1698) |
10'
17" |
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Concertino:
Violine I/II; Ripieno: Oboe I/II,
Violine I (3), Violine II (3),
Viola I/II (Tenor- &
Bass-Viola da gamba); Continuo:
Bass-Viola da gamba, Violone,
Fagott, Cembalo |
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- Sonata. Grave -
Allegro |
4' 08" |
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- Ballo. Allegro |
1' 40" |
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- Grave |
1' 02" |
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- Aria |
1' 32" |
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- Giga |
1' 55" |
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Heinrich
Ignaz Franz Biber (1644-1704) |
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Sonata a 6 "die
Pauern Kirchfahrt genandt"
B-dur |
6'
22" |
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Violine I/II/III,
Viola I/II (Tenor- &
Bass-Viola da gamba); Continuo:
Violone, Bass-Viola da gamba,
Cembalo |
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- Sonata. Adagio -
Presto |
1' 33" |
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- Die Pauern
Kirchfahrt - Adagio |
2' 19" |
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- Aria |
2' 30" |
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Sonata a 2
violini, trombone, violone
d-moll |
6'
52" |
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Violine I/II/,
Posaune, Bass-Viola da gamba,
Cembalo |
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- (Allegro non
troppo) |
0' 34" |
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- (Poco allegro) |
0' 46" |
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- (Adagio) |
1' 04" |
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- (Allegro) |
0' 21" |
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- (Adagio) |
1'
16" |
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- (Poco allegro)
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0' 17" |
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- (Adagio) |
0' 55" |
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- (Allegro) |
0' 19" |
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- (Allegro) |
1' 21" |
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Sonata VIII
B-dur (aus Fidicinium
sacro-profanum) |
5'
18" |
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Violine, Viola
I/II (Tenor-Viola, Tenor-Viola da
gamba); Continuo: Violone,
Baß-Viola da gamba, Cembalo |
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- Allegro |
1' 33" |
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- (Presto) |
2' 39" |
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- Presto - Adagio |
1' 06" |
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Battalia a 10
D-dur (aus Fidicinium
sacro-profanum) |
7'
44" |
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Violine I-III,
Viola I/IV (Viola, Tenor-Viola,
Tenor-Viola da gamba), Violone
I/II (Violone, Bass-Viola da
gamba); Cembalo |
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- Sonata. Allegro |
0' 58" |
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- Allegro. Die
liederliche Gesellschaft von
allerley Humor |
0' 41" |
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- Presto |
0' 37" |
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- Der Mars |
1' 04" |
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- Presto |
0' 34" |
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- Aria |
1' 48" |
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- Die Schlacht |
0' 44" |
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- Lamento der
verwundten Musquetierer (Adagio) |
1' 18" |
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CONCENTUS MUSICUS,
WIEN |
Instrumentarium: |
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Nikolaus Harnoncourt,
Leitung |
Oboen:
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- P. Paulhahn,
Deutschland, um 1720 |
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- H. Schuck, Wien
1963 (Kopie eines Instrumentes von
P. Paulhahn, Deutschland. um 1720) |
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Fagott:
Anon., Wien, 18. Jh. |
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Tenor-Posaune:
Herbert Latzsch, Bremen 1964 (nach
einem Modell von Friedrich Ehe,
Nürnberg, um 1700) |
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Violinen:
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- Jacobus Stainer,
Absam 1658 |
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- Jacobus Stainer,
Absam 1677 |
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- Klotz, Mittenwald,
18. Jh. und H. 18. Jh. |
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- Furber, London
1804 |
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Viola:
Matthias Thier, Wien 1806 |
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Tenor-Viola:
Marcellus Mollmayr, Wien 17. Jh. |
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Tenor-Viol da
gamba: anon., Brescia, um 1580 |
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Bass-Viola da
gamba: |
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- Jacob Precheisn,
Wien 1670 |
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- anon., England, um
1670 |
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Violone:
Antony Stefan Posch, Wien 1729 |
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Cembalo:
Martin Skowroneck, Bremen 1957
(Kopie eines italienischen
Kielflügels, um 1700, aus dem Museum
für Hamburgische Geschichte) |
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Luogo
e data di registrazione |
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Musée,
Chartres (Francia) - aprile 1978 |
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Registrazione:
live / studio |
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studio |
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Producer /
Engineer |
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Andreas
Holschneider / Heinz Wildhagen |
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Prima Edizione
LP |
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Archiv
- 2533 419 - (1 lp) - durata 62'
25" - (p) 1979 - Analogico |
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Edizione
"Collectio" CD |
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Archiv
- 437 080-2 - (1 cd) - durata 62'
25" - (c) 1986 - ADD |
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Note |
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AUSTRIAN
BAROQUE COURT
MUSIC
The
reign of the Emperor
Leopold I (1658-1705)
was a golden age for all
the arts, and for music
in particular. The
misery of the Thirty
Years' War was over, and
as though to cumpensate
for its orrors, artists
created an illusory
world of beauty and
splendour. The monarchs
of Europe competed with
one another in the
magnificence of their
palaces, at their head
the great rivals Louis
XIV of France and
Leopold I of Austria.
The Hapsburgs had always
loved music, and in
Leopold I this love grew
until it became an
almost unbridled
passion. The Emperor,
who was himself a
composer of considerable
attainments, placed
great importance on
choosing personally
between applicants for
musical positions at his
court; even when the
treasury was empty, and
he could not pay his
soldiers, he always
found the means to
provide for his musical
requirements. A
contemporary wrote about
him: "...for if there
was anything in the
world to delight the
Emperor, it was certain
to be good music. It
increased his joy and
lessened his cares, and
it may assuredly be said
of him that no other
pleasure gave him such
enjoyment as a
well-ordered concert...
his musical
establishment may
probably he described as
the finest in the
world... When a
particular passage
occurred which pleased
him, he closed his eyes
in order to listen more
attentively..." Owing to
the fact that thorough
musical training was
regarded as part of a
general education at
that time, a similar
passion for music also
spread to many smaller
courts; the Arcbishop of
Olmütz, Prince
Liechtenstein,
maintained at his
residence Kremsier a
large orchestra of
carefully picked
virtuosi which was in no
way inferior to time
Imperial orchestra, and
in some respects even
outshone it, while the
Archbishop of Salzburg,
like many another
spiritual and temporal
rulers, kept a brilliant
court “Capelle'. These
princes also built
themselves magnificent
palaces, within whose
marble-covered walls
music had not only an
architectonic
equivalent, but also an
ideal sounding board.
The love of music among
the nobility naturally
spread throughout the
whole of society. There
was music making in most
middle-class homes, in
many churches Mass was
celebrated daily with
instrumental
accompaniment, and music
was widely cultivated in
the Jesuit schools. Thus
gifed musicians had
ample opportunity and
encouragement to
exercise their art.
Georg Muffat, who was
born in Savoy, studied
with Lully, the most
illustrious musician of
the age, in Paris, then
he went to Wenna, where
he enjoyed the patronage
of Leopold I. He later
became organist to the
Archbishop of Salzburg,
who sent him to Rome to
master the Italian style
of music. Thus he was
probably the first
musician who consciously
drew for his
compositions on a
combination of the
Frenth and Italian
styles, both of which he
had studied under the
guidance of their
principal exponents. In
the foreword to his
“Florilegium" he gave
precise directions for
"...easier understanding
of how such a ballet is
to be performed in the
true and most elegant
manner,,,", placing the
greatest emphasis on the
numbers of instruments
to be employed, the
decorations, and in
particular the correct
methods of bowing. Ihe
suites making up the
Florilegium were written
as “ballets in
accordance with the
ideas of the late M.
Joann Baptist de
Lully...", that is to
say in the French style.
The “Eighth Part in E
minor, or major with the
major third, named
Indissolubilis Amicitia
or Indissoluble
Friendship, was produced
in 1695 as a, ballet
founded on a play
concerning the
friendship between Damon
and Pythias". In the 4th
part, "Les Gendarmes",
"four mounted dancers
fired off pistols à
tempo” at a moment
indicated by asterisks.
- "The first Concerto in
D, entitled Bona Nova
(Good News), composed at
Salzburg in l689", is
one of Muffat's "Twelve
Concertos devised with
great diligence in a
hitherto unfamiliar
manner for the rare
delectation of the
ears..." He was inspired
to the composition of
these works while
studying in Rome, where
he "...heard with the
greatest delight and
wonder some concertos of
this kind most carefully
produced by the
artistically fruitful
Arcangelo Corelli." In
these works Muffat
deliberately blended the
French and Italian
styles: "... I strove so
to balance profound
Italian feeling with
French gaiety and charm
that neither the one
should colour the music
too darkly, nor the
other make it too
frivolous." The spirit
of the Italian concerto
is here skilfully
brought together with
the form of the French
suite. In the succession
of movements the two
normally conflicting
styles alternate
amicably: "In the
opening sonatas and the
affettuoso slow
movements the Italian
manner may be observed,
while the intervening
dances are founded on
the French style."
Heinrich Biber, one of
the most gifted
composers of the 18th
century, was born at
Wartenberg in Bohemia.
We know nothin about his
musical training, but he
probably studied the
violin and composition
under Schmelzer, who
later became Court
Capellmeister in Vienna.
Both his style and the
fact that Schmelzer was
closely associated with
Biber's first employer
Prince Liechtenstein,
Archbishop of Olmütz,
suggest that Schmelzer
was his teacher.
Although Biber left this
first position against
his employer's wishes,
the Archbishop had such
a high opinion of his
artistic genius that he
asked for copies of all
Biber’s works to be sent
to him. From Olmütz
Biber went to Salzburg,
where he became
Vice-Capellmeister.
Numerous concert tours
won him a worldwide
reputation as a virtuoso
violinist, and he was
raised to the nobility
by Leopold I. He was on
friendly terms with the
most famous violin maker
of the period, Jakobus
Stainer. In his
instrumental works he
brought out the tonal
and technical
possibilities of each
instrument to splendid
effect.
The four sonatas
selected for inclusion
in this recording
demonstrate the
diversity of forms in
which a sonata could be
written at that time.
The Sonata VIII from the
"Fidicinium"' and the
Sonata for 2 violins,
trombone and continuo
are wholly in the
traditional Italian
style: each is in one
movement, whose fast and
slow sections are joined
without a break. The
first of these works is
monolithic ensemble
music, while the second
is a concert piece for
three virtuosi, to each
of whom is assigned a
free, cadenza-like solo.
The most unusual of
these works are probably
the two programmatic
pieces. In the
"Pauernkirchfahrt"
(Country Churchgoing) we
can visualise the
assembling of the
countryfolk, and a
rocession arriving from
the distance and
entering a church
ringing with the sound
of organ music, after
which there follow a
vigorous peasant dance
and an attractive Aria,
probably proceeding from
the tavern. - The
"Battalia" (Battle) is
perhaps the most
"modern" work in the
whole range of Baroque
music. After the warlike
introductory Sonata
(with its "col legno"
effect of striking the
strings with the wood of
the how) we hear the
"Musketeers" singing a
hotch-potch of their
coarse songs, including
"Kraut und Rüben" which
Bach used in his
Goldberg Variations.
Biber wrote of this
passage: "Hic dissonant
ubique, nam enum sic
diversis cantilenis
clamore solent" (Here
all voices are at
variance, as different
songs are being roared
out simultaneously).
After a short Interlude
there follows the
"March", in which the
violin has to imitate a
fife, and the
double-bass a drum.
(Biber wrote: "Where the
drum is heard in the
bass, a piece of paper
must be used on the
string..."). Then come a
song of horsemen and the
farewell before the
battle, in which the
cannons are represented
by "Bartók pizzicati":
("The battle must not be
played with the bow, but
the string must be
plucked strongly with
the right hand in
imitation of the pieces
of cannon!"). The
concluding "Lament of
the wounded" may seem
macabre to us,
especially when we
reflect that the entire
work is dedicated to
Bacchus, as Biher stated
on the title page. At
that time, however, when
puerperal fever,
smallpox and the plague
were a constant threat
to mankind, people had
an entirely different
attitude to suffering
and death. The musical
representation of the
"programme" is extremely
concise; in accordance
with the custom of the
period, Biber expressed
himself in the briefest
possible way. The
instruments used in this
recording are very
similar to those which
Muffat and Biber had at
their disposal. The
instruments of Jakobus
Stainer, the most
renowned violin maker of
that period,
corresponded perfectly
with the tonal concepts
of his day. Biber was on
friendly terms with him,
and had the use of
various Stainer
instruments both at
Kremsier and at
Salzburg. The adjustment
of all the string
instruments used in the
recording (fitting of
fingerboard, neck, bass
bar and strings) is
either as it was
originally, or has een
carefully restored
accordingly. The
woodwind instruments
were practically
keyless, semitones being
obtained by half closing
holes or forked
fingering, and notes of
the second and third
octaves by overblowing.
The contrast between
"open" and "covered"
notes produced a variety
of tonal effects which
was greatly appreciated
at the time. Fortunately
it was possible to
obtain a very weil
preserved oboe dating
from the first quarter
of the 18th century for
this recording, and a
second oboe was made as
a replica of it, both as
regards construction and
tone quality. The
trombone used in Biber's
Sonata, a copy exactly
modelled on instruments
of the period, is
considerably narrower in
bore than modern
trombones, and therefore
softer. Thus it did not
prove difficult to
obtain a faultless
balance between the
gentle tone of the
Baroque violins and that
of the trombone. The
harpsichord is not
fitted with plastic or
leather plectra as is
customary nowadays, but
with quills; so as to
produce the brilliant
sound of period
harpsichords. The tuning
of the harpsichord and
the intonation of the
wind and string
instruments are not in
accordance with the
principle of equal
temperament adopted
today, but according to
the "meantone" system,
i. e. in certain keys
the major third is tuned
absolutely purely.
Enharmonic changes are
impossible, since each
note has only one
identity; e. g. G#,
which is tuned purely in
relation to E, cannot be
used as Ab. If remote
keys are employed,
certain notes have to be
re-tuned. The advantages
of this system of
tuning, which was
customary during the
17th century and well on
into 18th, are greater
purity of intonation
when playing in the most
commonly used keys,
together with the
emphasizing of the
genuine personal
characteristics of
different tonalities,
which equal temperament
tuning renders
absolutely
imperceptible.
In the string sonatas of
Biber and the two suites
of Muffat the viola da
gamba is joined by a
violone: "...If the
musicians are sufficient
in number the large bass
known as the violone or
double-bass will lend
especial majesty,
although it is not yet
used in the ballets of
the school of Lully".
The instrumentation of
Muffat’s "Concerti" is
particularly
interesting. According
to his own directions
they could be played
either as chamber music
by three to five
stringed instruments, or
"to make more majestic
harmony", with solo and
tutti as string
concertos. "If, however,
there are some among you
musicians who can play
sweetly and skilfully
upon the French oboe,
you may well use the
best two of chem instead
of two violinists, and a
good bassoonist instead
of the bass player
taking part in the
continuo. I have often
performed the fist...
Concerto in this way, to
good effect." Muffat was
therefore already
recommending the oboe,
which had been developed
in Paris only a short
time before, as a solo
instrument.
In all these works, in
accordance with the
practice of the period
when they were composed,
reptitions have been
varied by the addition
of improvised
embellishments, and
passages written in
notes of equal value
have frequently been
performed in a dotted
rhythm: "...It is to be
observed that the values
of certain notes are
altered somewhat for the
sake of greater
elegance..." Above all
in Muffat's Suite for
strings his directions
concerning the elegant
manner have been
followed scrupulously:
"The melodies of the
ballets in the style of
the renowned J. B. Lully
are so to be played on
the violin... that
anything more charming
or beautiful coul
scarcely be imagined...
The embellishments add
lustre to the ballet
music like glittering
precious stones...".
Nikolaus
Harnoncourt
(Translated
from the
German)
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