Antoine Tamestit

Antoine Tamestit – Bel Canto. The Voice of the Viola (2017/2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:05:13 minutes | 1,17 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © harmonia mundi

Here the diva is the viola! How did the viola move from the status of ‘dramatic contralto among instrumental voices’ (to quote the critic Henri Blanchard) to ‘a character of nobility and languor’, according to Georg Kastner’s treatise on instrumentation (1837)? Going well beyond mere historical interest, this album answers the question by unveiling the charms of a repertory that delighted Parisian concert halls and salons throughout the 19th century. It tells the story of an instrument that at last emerged from the violin’s shadow thanks to immense virtuosos; and now the talent of two great musicians of our time brings back to life these pieces which offer much more than the exquisite languors of bel canto. The diva is the viola; its servant is named Antoine Tamestit.
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Antoine Tamestit – Bach: Cello Suites Nos. 1, 3 & 5 (arr. for viola) (2012)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 59:08 minutes | 570 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © Naïve

As a child, Antoine Tamestit studied the violin, but at age 10, he fell in love with the six unaccompanied Cello Suites of J.S. Bach and immediately wanted to switch to the cello. His teacher advised him that playing that instrument would involve learning a completely new technique, so he was allowed to switch instead to the viola. Thus, Tamestit was able to play the suites as arranged for his present instrument, and because the viola has the tuning of C-G-D-A, Bach’s originals have been transposed up an octave. This 2012 recording of three of the suites, BWV 1007, 1009, and 1011, is presumably the first of two discs, creating anticipation for disc two, for Tamestit’s interpretations are outstanding and promise to make the complete set required listening. He has been acclaimed as one of the finest violists in the world, and his lively tempos and light articulation reveal his profound understanding of the music. The dance impulse is ever-present in these suites, which have a greater ease of movement and flow at the higher transposition. Additionally, Tamestit plays the Stradivarius “Mahler” viola from 1672 with a modern Baroque-style bow, which gives his performances a period sound that is often absent from cello interpretations. And while there is no attested version for viola from Bach’s hand, his predilection for arranging his works for various instruments makes these transcriptions utterly appropriate. Naïve’s recording is clean and vibrant with natural presence, so Tamestit’s playing is heard to best advantage.
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Antoine Tamestit – Georg Philipp Telemann: Viola Concertos – Overtures – Fantasias (2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:08:26 minutes | 1,36 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © harmonia mundi

A precursor in this field as in so many others, Telemann gave the viola its very first masterpieces, immediately establishing it as a solo instrument in its own right. Alongside Sabine Fehlandt and the musicians of the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Antoine Tamestit pays splendid tribute to this pioneering music, which blends melodic charm and contrapuntal rigour into an organic whole.
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