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Leo Geyer Born 1992 Unfurling

Leo Geyer was born in London of Anglo-Indian descent. He studied jointly at Manchester University and Royal Northern College of Music where the emphasis was on composition and conducting. Continue reading 15th December 2024 – Elmore Quartet – Programme notes

Nicola Matteis c. 1650- c. 1714.
Passagio Rotto

Very little is known about Matteis’ early life other than he was probably born in Naples around 1650 and came to England at the beginning of 1670.

His fame gradually grew as a virtuoso violinist and he was credited as changing the English taste for violin playing from the French style, elaborate and highly ornamented, to the newer more lyrical, expressive Italian style.

He published a substantial amount of music, primarily instrumental, under the title ‘Ayres for the violin’ as well as a few songs.
His compositions have been described as ‘ Lively, well -crafted and expressive’.
He gave precise instructions in the prefaces to his published music, knowing that many of his customers would be amateurs, including bowing, explanation of ornaments and tempo markings.
These have proved to be a valuable resource to scholars in the reconstruction of the performance practice of the time.

He married a wealthy widow in 1700, with whom he had a son also called Nicola, and in 1714 bought a manor in Norfolk in an attempt to escape the demands of living in London.
He lived a life of luxury, but according to the contemporary diarist Roger North, ‘ an excess of pleasures threw him into a dropsyes, and so he became poor. And dyed miserable’!

Passagio Rotto ( broken passages) comes from The Second Part of Ayres for the Violin.

Johann Sebastian Bach 1685-1750
Sonata for violin and continuo in E minor BWV 1023
I. ( no tempo indication) II. Adagio ma non tanto III. Allemande IV. Gigue

There are several works attributed to Bach for violin and continuo ( not to be confused with the Sonatas for solo violin!) but only two, the ones in G major and the one in E minor performed here are confirmed to be by him.
It is not certain who he wrote them for, either for himself, an accomplished violinist, or for his friend Johann Georg Pisendel, the leading violinist of Central Germany at the time.
The E minor Sonata was thought to be written sometime between 1714-17, but was only first published in 1867!
It opens with a flurry of semiquavers on the violin, and after a series of lively figurations, this short movement leads straight into the poignant, lilting Adagio.
An energetic Allemande is followed by a Gigue, featuring some syncopated rhythms, giving the movement an almost jazzy, swinging feel at times, and despite the minor key, a happy-go-lucky mood!

Johann Paul von Westhoff 1656-1705
Sonata for violin and continuo in A major La Guerra.
I. Adagio con una dolce maniera – Allegro II. Tremulo Adagio III. Allegro ovvero un poco presto IV. Adagio V. Aria ( Adagio assai) VI. La Guerra cosi nominata di sua maestà VII. Aria ( Tutto Adagio) VIII. Vivace IX. Gigue.

Westhoff was born in Dresden. He became a pupil of Heinrich Schutz and in 1674 joined the Dresden Hofkapelle as musician and composer, where he remained a member for more than 20 years. During this period he travelled throughout Europe, visiting Hungary, Italy, France, Holland and Austria as one of the most famous violinists of his time and composed some of the earliest known music for solo violin.
He left Dresden in 1697 and after briefly teaching contemporary languages at Wittenberg University, in 1699 became chamber secretary, musician and teacher of French and Italian at the Weimar Court.
In Weimar he met JS Bach, who was a colleague, and proved a considerable influence on the latter composer. He died in Weimar in April 1705.

His surviving music includes seven works for violin and basso continuo and seven for solo violin, all published in his lifetime.
His Suite for Solo Violin of 1683 is the earliest known multi-movement piece for solo violin and together with his Six Partitas were a forerunner of Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin.

Johann Sebastian Bach
Sonata for violin and continuo in C minor BWV 1024
I. Adagio II. Presto III. Affetuoso IV. Vivace

There is some doubt as to whether this was written by Bach or more probably by J G Pisendel. It was first published in 1867.
The opening Adagio features some poignant passage work for the violin. The Presto includes a striking descending sequence and a dramatic final cadence. A deeply expressive Affetuoso is followed by a Vivace, with notable moments where the violin and continuo play short phrases in unison, brief moments of unanimity.

Programme notes by Guy Richardson.

Bohuslav Martinů 1890-1959

Oboe Quartet H 315 Written in 1947

Moderato poco allegro

Adagio, Andante poco Moderato – poco Allegro

Martinů was a Czechoslovakian composer who was for a time a student at the Prague Conservatory. Composition was more important to him than his violin studies and he did not take to the rigours of the general curriculum and was eventually dismissed for “ incorrigible negligence” ! In the 1930s having moved to Paris Martinů wrote in the Neoclassical style and was influenced strongly by Stravinsky’s angular and rhythmic sound-world. Martinů drew on his Bohemian and Moravian traditional folk melodies and has thus been compared with Prokofiev and Bartók.

Martinů and his family fled Europe for the USA in 1940 and this oboe quartet was written in New York in a period of turbulent personal life. Martinů finally returned to Europe and died in Switzerland.

The quartet is a light piece which is rarely performed. It has two short movements. Martinů’s angular and quirky instrumental writing is evident and the strong rhythmical character and close imitation of phrases between the four players is immediately clear. The oboe is not seen here as the lead or solo player but is in balance with the other instruments.

The first movement has a genial mood and uncomplicated structure. The second movement is in three sections. The opening chords set up the dance style that reflects Martinů’s Czechoslovakian origins and sound-world. The quartet is rounded off with a short allegro that culminates in a straightforward cadence.

Poulenc 1899-1963

Sonata for Oboe and Piano 1962

Elégie (Paisiblement, sans presser)

Scherzo (Très animé)

Déploration ( Très calme)

Francis Poulenc was born in Paris into a prosperous and well educated family. His mother taught him the piano from a young age. As a student he met Milhaud and Satie and others who encouraged him to compose. He travelled to Vienna and met Schoenberg. Composition training was not successful and Ravel could get nowhere with this most individual musician. Poulenc wrote many pieces of chamber music and much was influenced by Jazz.

Roger Nichols Poulenc’s biographer tells us that “Poulenc’s style and the French Aesthetic…are defined by their elegance, lightness of touch and humour but with the ability to move one deeply” For some commentators Poulenc’s music is seen as slight, inconsequential and not worthy of serious consideration, but Nichols’ view is more positive and understanding of a very complex personality writing music from his own conviction rather than received education and composition training.

This sonata for oboe and piano was dedicated to the memory of Prokofiev. It is from a group of three woodwind sonatas written in the last year of his life. The first movement is in three distinct sections. The Piano keeps the pulse while the oboe weaves around using its wide register in a variety of moods. The Scherzo is a lively three part movement with a slower middle area and more rhythmic outer sections. The final movement echoes the Chorale of Bach’s time 200 years earlier. This movement is melancholic and has many references to Poulenc’s own earlier music. The harmonic language of his choral pieces and Organ Concerto for example is reflected here.

Roger Nichols in The New Grove Dictionary of Music.

Sergey Prokofiev 1891-1953

Quintet Op 39 in G Minor. 1924

Tema con variazioni, Andante energico, Allegro sostenuto, ma con brio,

Adagio pesante, Allegro precipitato, ma non troppo presto, Andantino

Prokofiev was born in Ukraine. His mother was a pianist and a very strong musical influence over her only child. He was precocious and at eleven years old began to take lessons from Glier in harmony, form and orchestration. In 1905 Prokofiev joined the St Petersburg Conservatory. This was an uncertain and disruptive time as the arts suffered in the build-up to the Revolution. In 1918 Prokofiev travelled to the USA where he made a name as an opera composer, but he was dissatisfied and moved on in 1922, this time to Paris to join his mother who was already there. He married a singer and settled into a family life with their two sons. At this time there were no plans for the family to return to Russia.

This Quintet is closely related to Prokofiev’s ballet Trapèze and is based on life in the circus. It reflects Prokofiev’s characteristically ironic and unconventional musical world. The six movements demonstrate spikey angular lines and contrasting smoother melodies. It is playful and energetic and the circus is not far away. In the first movement the two contrasting variations are formed from the oboe’s opening theme. The second movement features the double bass whose theme is taken up by the other instruments in turn. The third movement evokes the circus as the uneven rhythmical patterns in 5/4 time threaten to destabilise the listeners. The original ballet dancers found this particularly challenging too ! The Adagio pesante has a drone played by the double bass. This underpins a somewhat eerie sound above with the oboe and violin playing near the bridge. The fifth movement is as its title suggests very energetic and there are strong accents, rushing scales and pizzicato attacks. Finally a minuet and trio with instruments working in pairs. After the trio the minuet returns and the whole piece is brought to its end with a short dissonant passage and a rush to the finish which is led by the viola and double bass. Circus life indeed !

Programme notes by Helen Simpson.