Carlo Calegari - Tessarini: 6 Violin Sonatas, Op. 14, 6 Trio Sonatas, Op. 9 (2019)

Another chapter in the rediscovery of an 18th-century master by Brilliant Classics. While the music of this Rimini-born violinist, composer and publisher has been excerpted and recorded on several albums, Brilliant Classics is assembling a uniquely comprehensive overview of a figure much esteemed in his lifetime for music that sparkles like the Venetian lagoons, yet has been almost completely forgotten until recently.

In fact it was while working in Venice that Carlo Tessarini (1690-1766) discovered his music to have been published in unauthorised editions in London and Amsterdam, capitalising on his popularity and acclaim across Europe, and so began his own career as a publisher. His catalogue of work comprises 280 instrumental compositions, including 85 sonatas for violin and basso continuo. Largely made up of three movements, they are highly distinctive in idiom, full of the brilliance that was to become a feature of the nascent ‘galant’ style in Europe, but with a vein of typically Italian vitality.

The Op.14 sonatas are less virtuosic than Tessarini’s other compositions in the same genre, allowing for performance on the flute. Special care has been taken on the present recording to highlight the greater degree of imitation in the exchange between the solo instrument and the basso continuo as well as the well-constructed variety of the various movements. They are interspersed here with three Preludes or ‘partimenti’ by Fedele Fenaroli (1730-1818), a Neapolitan composer even less familiar to us now than Tessarini.

A previous volume of violin sonatas with the same performers (BC94787) won critical acclaim: ‘Considering the quality of his sonatas and the fact that they reflect the developments in the style of composing of the time this disc has to be warmly welcomed. Valerio Losito and Federico Del Sordo deliver very fine performances which convincingly bring out the characteristics and qualities of Tessarini's sonatas.’ (MusicWeb International)

Carlo Tessarini (1690-1767) received his musical tuition in Venice, probably with Vivaldi and Corelli (whose musical heir he clearly is). He became a famous virtuoso on the violin, travelling Europe like a modern day pop star. He died in Amsterdam, leaving a substantial oeuvre mainly written for his own instrument.
His sonatas are firmly rooted in the baroque tradition, but already pointing towards the “galante style” of the late 18th century, with an emphasis on belcanto melodies and clear and transparent structures.
This new recording contains the 6 Violin Sonatas Op. 14 and the 6 Trio Sonatas Op. 9, music written in a brilliant instrumental style, full of Italian vitality.
Excellent performances by Baroque specialists Valerio Losito and Paolo Perrone(violin), Federico Del Sordo (harpsichord), Carlo Calegari (cello).