These recordings featuring the lion of Baroque ensemble music, Ton Koopman, were recorded in 2010 and 2011, and some have appeared in the past. These chamber pieces by Dieterich Buxtehude remain all but unknown, and they might seem an odd choice for reissue as a complete set. Challenge Classics seems to acknowledge as much by billing Koopman as the lead artist, although he was simply the continuo player. However, the set, covering three CDs in its physical version, offers absorbing listening for anyone, not just Buxtehude ...
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These recordings featuring the lion of Baroque ensemble music, Ton Koopman, were recorded in 2010 and 2011, and some have appeared in the past. These chamber pieces by Dieterich Buxtehude remain all but unknown, and they might seem an odd choice for reissue as a complete set. Challenge Classics seems to acknowledge as much by billing Koopman as the lead artist, although he was simply the continuo player. However, the set, covering three CDs in its physical version, offers absorbing listening for anyone, not just Buxtehude fans or Baroque specialists. The music is a fascinating mix of the free fantasy typical of Buxtehude with new Italianate sonata styles. The sonatas are in the multi-sectional (as opposed to multi-movement) form of the 17th century that would soon be swept away by Corelli and his clean three- and four-movement structures, but that synchronized beautifully with the musical imagination known to those who've heard Buxtehude's organ music. Especially interesting is the first volume, played...
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