Passacaglia • Prussian Blue (CD)

Prussian Blue – CPE Bach Sonatas for flute, viola da gamba and harpsichord

Prussian Blue is Passacaglia’s exploration of early sonatas (1737-1747) by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. In this period Emanuel moved from his student haunt of Frankfurt to the court of Frederick the Great in Berlin, and the turbulent and impassioned music he wrote seems to be a conscious rejection of the baroque style that had come before. The chiaroscuro contrasts and wild harmonic leaps seems to foreshadow music that would be written 50 years later; and yet there’s also exquisite galant refinement and balance.

Too often overshadowed in recent times by the work of his father, CPE Bach was highly regarded in his own lifetime. Charles Burney wrote that he was ‘one of the greatest composers that ever existed’ and that while his music could be ‘fantastical and far-fetched… his flights are not the wild ravings of ignorance or madness, but the effusions of cultivated genius.’

Passacaglia explore this brilliant, engaging, and hugely rewarding repertoire as a trio: Annabel Knight playing baroque flute, Reiko Ichise on viola da gamba, and Robin Bigwood at the harpsichord.

BCR025 • Released 2022