CPE Bach's sensations

Who doesn't know the famous picture Flute concert in Sanssouci by Adolph Menzel, in which Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach is immortalized as the harpsichord accompanist to his employer, the Prussian King Frederick II. Immortalized in a painting, but rather marginalized as a composer today - this is the fate of Johann Sebastian Bach's second eldest son. Yet Carl Philipp Emanuel, born in Weimar in 1714, was an important pioneer of modernism at the time. No longer baroque, not yet classical, perhaps it is this "era of sensibility" that has affected his reception. Bach represented the aesthetic spirit of optimism of his time with an incredible modernity, which also includes the groundbreaking sonatas.

To mark the 300th birthday of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Basel-based Swiss baroque specialist Leila Schayegh presents a highly recommended recording. In a joyful and "gallant" interplay with her accompanist Jörg Halubek, she traces with wonderful sound the beautiful, daring and new things that Bach so decidedly demanded for a "true masterpiece". Included are the sonatas Wq 76 and Wq 78, in which the special qualities of Bach's modernism are palpable. The dialogue between violin and accompanying instrument, for example, or the sensitive violin cantilenas beautifully "sung" by Schayegh. These come into their own all the more as the CD opens with the early Sonata in D major, which shows Bach in 1731 during his time with Frederick II, still strongly under the influence of his father.

All the more striking, almost shocking, against this background is the Free Fantasy in F sharp minor Wq 80, die den sinnigen Titel «C. P. E. Bachs Empfindungen» trägt. Die beiden Musiker haben sich hier für einen Tangentenflügel (Späth & Schmal) entschieden, der mit seinem, dem Hammerklavier ähnlichen Klang bestens zu diesem Experimentierstück passt.

The Sonata in C major Wq 78, also with tangent grand piano, is the highlight. Jörg Halubek proves himself to be an accomplished player of this rarely heard instrument, while Leila Schayegh delights with her round, softly caressing and yet clear, almost sinewy tone. It is fascinating how she is able to adapt her colors to the very different sounds of the harpsichord and the tangent grand piano.