Passacaglia - Boismortier: Suites and Sonatas - The Recorder

In his book The Recorder and its Music Edgar Hunt, assessing minor masters of 18th century France, described Boismortier as "head and shoulders above the rest..." There were contemporary testimonies to his fluency and prolificacy, and even some fifty years after his death he still had his advocates. Not many years ago a disc devoted entirely to his music would hardly have been a consideration, but Passacaglia's latest is one of a number to have appeared more recently.

His chamber music, in a multitude of forms and instrumentations, provides ensembles with a wealth of music that makes assembling a varied and rewarding programme a pleasurable task. Passacaglia have clearly appreciated this and provided the listener both with earlier and later works and creatively made use of the instrumental combinations available to them. Like many of his French contemporaries Boismortier wrote mostly for the transverse flute, but in the well-known practice of the period much of this music can be transposed upwards to suit recorder, or performed in the original keys on voice flute. In his synthesis of French and Italian elements Boismortier showed particularly facility and the Trio Sonata in E minor from the early Opus 12 (1726), played here on voice flutes (and with organ in the continuo group), although bearing French tempo indications for the movements has already assimilated so much of the Italian style. At the other end of his output are the sonatas of Opus 91 (1741) for flute and obbligato harpsichord. The first of these in D major (which Annabel Knight plays very elegantly on Baroque flute) demonstrates how Boismortier also boldly explored the emerging gallant style.

All the members of the ensemble have an opportunity to step into the limelight: Reiko Ichise excels in a highly characteristic Suite for Viol in C major from Opus 31 and Robin Bigwood takes evident delight in a splendid Suite for harpsichord from Opus 59 that revels in the keyboard sonorities of the previous generation of clavicinists. Particularly effective is Louise Bradbury's performance on voice flute of the D minor Suite from Opus 35. These were originally published for flute to be played with or without continuo and the best of both worlds is achieved by the continuo being no more than delicately touched in by gamba and baroque guitar.

Passacaglia's playing has grown in maturity and style over the years they have performed together. On this disc they have clearly found inspiration in Boismortier's own brand of the goût réuni and impressively captured the fusion of French elegance and Italian vigour that is displayed in much of his music. He is sometimes referred to as "the French Telemann" and although nothing like as cosmopolitan as his German contemporary Boismortier certainly provided chamber musicians with an abundance of tuneful and finely crafted music in much the same way.

As has become the expectation from Linn, recording and presentation are of impressive quality and they, and Passacaglia, and indeed Boismortier himself all emerge from the enterprise with flying colours.

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