Welcome to Classics Night at New 12th Gate Coffee House
This evening, we explore the classics and add a little bit of comedy at the same time as we enjoy what perhaps is the most famous Baroque chamber piece ever written. Johann Pachelbel (1653–1706) was an acclaimed composer, organist, and teacher who brought the south German organ tradition to its peak. He composed a large body of sacred and secular music, and his contributions to the development of the chorale prelude and fugue have earned him a place among the most important composers of the middle Baroque.
Tonight we feature his familiar Canon in D. Johann Pachelbel’s beautiful interweaving of melody and harmony is surely one of the great works of music! But before we become serious and listen to the soothing tones; perhaps we might get a different take from comedian Ron Parovonian as he rants a bit. Just for fun….
This particular performance is recorded by the Voices of Music. It is performed on the original instruments.
Geek Notes: About the performance: the canon is played using not only the instruments but also the bowing techniques from the time of Pachelbel. As you can see from the video, especially if you look at the high definition version, the string instruments are not only baroque, but they are in baroque setup: this means that the strings, fingerboard, bridge and other parts of the violin appear just as they did in Pachelbel’s time. No metal hardware such as chinrests, clamps or fine tuners are used on the violins, allowing the violins to vibrate freely. A good example of baroque bowing can be seen in the extended passage of repeated notes: the musicians play these notes on one bow—the shorter and lighter baroque bow—to create a gliding effect. The players also hold the bow very differently which affects the balance and touch. Both the style and the amount of vibrato are based on baroque treatises which describe the methods for playing, bowing & articulation in the late 17th century. The narrow, shimmering vibrato blends with the baroque organ. The organ used is made entirely of wood, based on German baroque instruments, and the pipes are voiced to provide a smooth accompaniment to the strings, instead of a more soloistic sound. The large bass lute, or theorbo, provides a complement to the organ not only in the texture of the chords but also the long strings which occasionally sound the bass notes an octave lower. The continuo players play supporting chords and voices to the canon, carefully avoiding parallels and doubling of the parts.
Finally, I’ll leave you with a shorter video version of our featured piece tonight that I shared a few weeks ago. Technology cancertainly open the door to fun and creativity at the same time. Have a great week.
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Links – More than you ever wanted to know about….
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To view previous performances, visit Center Stage
