Diego Ortiz, a Spanish composer, worked in both Spain and Italy, serving for a time as bandmaster to the Duke of Alba.
Composition History
The three Recercadas by Diego Ortiz are variations on popular melodies of the day, taken from his 1553 handbook on playing variations, 'Tratado de glosas sobre clausulas y otros generos de puntos en la musica de violones'.
Composer Biography
Thomas Morley, known for his madrigals, left his post as organist of St. Paul's to sing in the choir of the Chapel Royal.
Composer Biography
Karl Friedrich Abel, a famous gamba player and composer, moved to London in 1759 after a decade with the Dresden court Band, where he had contact with Johann Sebastian Bach.
Compositional Technique
The four lute pieces on this album use scordatura, a technique where the two top strings (normally G and D) are lowered to E and C respectively, to create new timbres.
Historical Context
Karl Friedrich Abel and Johann Christian Bach collaborated in London, and were responsible for the first English performances of symphonies by Joseph Haydn.
Instruments
Louis de Caix d'Hervelois wrote a significant amount of music for the viola da gamba at a time when the cello was becoming the dominant instrument in that register.
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