J.S. Bach passed on his creative energy to his sons, and there is no better example of this musical vigor than C.P.E. Bach's attractive and life-enhancing E flat major Double Concerto.
Johann Sebastian Bach not only gave us an incredible range of great music of his own, but passed on his creative energy to his sons, who in turn produced an unquenchable current of musical ideas, which had remarkable influence and took music strongly forward into its next phase.
There is no better example of this musical vigour than C. P. E. Bach's attractive and lifeenhancing E flat major Double Concerto for harpsichord and fortepiano, H479. This is very attractively presented on Deutsche Harmonia Mundi's Baroque Esprit label by Collegium Aureum, with Eric Lynn Kelley (fortepiano) and Jos van Immerseel (harpsichord) as soloists. The Double Concerto dates from Bach's final year and deserves to be much better known. It has a chirpily inviting opening theme, with the orchestral flutes prominent, a fine, expressive Larghetto and an engaging finale, very Mozartian in idiom. The warm acoustic prevents the period-instrument accompaniment from being in any way abrasive. The other keyboard works included on the DHM disc, with Alan Curtis and Gustav Leonhardt as soloists, are a Sonatina for two harpsichords and orchestra, H453, and an F major Concerto, also for two harpsichords, H408. The Sonatina, written in 1762, is ambitiously scored for three trumpets, two each of flutes, oboes and horns, bassoon and strings. Moreover, its two movements are unusual in form and well demonstrate C. P. E. Bach's imaginative quirkiness. The F major Concerto, more modestly scored for strings and horns, was written much earlier (probably around 1740) but already displays the composer's individuality, particularly in its memorable Largo slow movement. All three works are very well played.
