Nostalgia

“Then Somis appeared on the scene. He was possessed of the finest and most majestic bow stroke in Europe. He overcame limits which foiled others and avoided the pitfalls into which others fell […] A single bow stroke lasted so long that the mere remembrance of it causes one to hold one’s breath; it seemed like a taut silk thread which, in order to preserve the purity of tone, was festooned with silver and filigree gold mixed with diamonds, rubies, garnets and above all pearls. One saw them appearing from his fingertips” (Hubert le Blanc, 1740) Little has been heard of Giovanni Battista Somis the composer and his works have failed to reappear in the concert hall even after several decades of historically informed performance practice. This state of affairs is even more surprising given the high musical quality of his works. Together with Johannes Hammerle, Wolfram Schurig plays several pieces of Somis and adapts them for the musical duo of flauto and cembalo.