Studio Masters

Roberto Loreggian – Muffat: Componimenti Musicali (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 02:14:17 minutes | 2,91 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Brilliant Classics

Gottlieb Muffat (1690-1770) was born in Passau as the son of the composer Georg Muffat. From 1711 he was court scholar under Johann Fux in Vienna, and in 1717 he was appointed third court organist of the court chapel by Charles VI. In the course of time, he took on other tasks, including the musical instruction of members of the imperial family members of the imperial family, including the future Empress Maria Theresa. in 1729 he was promoted to second organist, and after Maria Theresa’s accession to the throne in 1741 he became first organist. Muffat’s compositional output was mainly limited to music for keyboard instruments. His most important publication, Componimenti musicali per il cembalo (Augsburg, ca. 1736), is remarkably progressive in its basic approach. Although this collection of six suites retains the traditional Allemande, Courante and Sarabande form, but is more richly ornamented than was characteristic of Austro-German music of the time. Some of the movements even bear imaginative French titles such as La Coquette or L’aimable Esprit, which were popular with the clavecinists. The preface to to this work contains an ornamentation table with symbols and performance instructions for 57 ornaments. The soloist in this recording is the distinguished Italian keyboard instrumentalist Roberto Loreggian, an early music expert with an impressive discography. This recording is the first volume of the new Brilliant Classics complete recording of Muffat’s works for keyboard instruments. Critical praise for Roberto Loreggian: “He has a real gift for making the music sound as if he is improvising it – it’s easy to imagine that Frescobaldi himself is in the room with the listener.” (Early Music Review of BC 96154 Frescobaldi: Unpublished Works). “An unprecedented performance… The unadulterated naturalness of Loreggian’s interpretations captivates the listener.” (Suonare News about Frescobaldi’s toccatas and partitas).

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