On the occasion of the bicentenary of the death of Jean-Louis Duport, Claudio Ronco and Emanuela Vozza enter the garden of his compositions, guiding the listener and inviting him to discover a thousand faces of his Sonatas and Duos from every possible point of view.
Period instruments, notes written on yellowed paper over time, gut strings manufactured with rigorous historical criteria by Mimmo Peruffo, careful historical research on the genesis of the compositions, meticulous care in research on execution practice. For Claudio and Emanuela, making a CD is always the point of arrival of a long journey. But there is also a deep emotional involvement between the fruit of their work. The soul of a musician can never feed only on study and technique. It needs colors, flavors, and smells. The clear sky at dawn, the enchantment of a sunset, the gentle murmur of the water of a stream, the intense green of the meadows and woods, the scent of flowers, and the intense taste of the fruits of the earth.
And then there are the silences, ready to welcome the notes that, under the agile fingers of the interpreters, wake up from a long sleep. The medieval church of Monferrer and the large hall of Mas Vilalte, an imposing eighteenth-century manor house, near Corsavy. Stone buildings, inside which suggestive acoustic effects are created, are cleverly exploited by the interpreters to give the sound the desired color. For the first and last of the Sonatas and the duets, the intimate and intimate atmosphere of the church. For the second and fifth Sonatas the hall. And, finally, the different position of the microphones allows the listener to put himself in the shoes of who is playing. A sound that expands freely in ancient environments. A sound that meets the ancient stones on its way and reaches us loaded with the life that used to take place among those stones for centuries.
Thus, track after track, an elegant and refined dialogue between the two instruments resumes life. Sometimes a close and lively dialogue is heard, and sometimes a peaceful sharing of dreams. And those who listen are amazed that such a fascinating musical heritage has stayed for a long time sleeping among the pages of the scores, on the shelves of libraries.
A wonderful CD, to listen to and listen to again, imagining that you are next to Claudio and Emanuela, in the enchanted landscape of the French Pyrenees.
JEAN-LOUIS DUPORT, Six SONATES / pour Violoncelle et Baße / Dediés / A Sa Majesté / Frederic Guillaume II / Roy de Prusse / Œuvre IV, publ. Sieber, Paris 1789.
– Sonata n.1 in D major: Allegro – Adagio – Rondeau Gratioso
– Sonata n.2 in G major: Allegro Moderato – Adagio – Allegro Assai
– Sonata n.5 in F major: Allegro Moderato – Adagio Cantabile (in E flat major) – Tempo di Minuetto con variazioni
– Sonata n.6 in D major: Allegro – Adagio – Allegro Assai
JEAN-LOUIS DUPORT, Trois DUOS / pour Deux Violoncelles /Composés par / L. Duport / Œuvre…, publ. Sieber, Paris ca. 1781/82
– Duo n.2 in D minor: Allegro molto – Rondeau
– Duo n.3 in G major: Adagio – Presto – Rondeau Gracioso
Performers: Claudio Ronco – Emanuela Vozza, cellos
Label: Urania
Released: April17, 2020
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