Beyond the limits

With these six symphonies dedicated to Baron Van Swieten, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach multiplied the most advanced outbursts of instrumental and expressive genius. Entirely devoid of sentimentality and gratuitous extravagance, they open the doors to both Viennese Classicism and its immediate successor: Romanticism. It was only natural that, after tackling Haydn and the Esterházy Princes, Amandine Beyer and Gli Incogniti should investigate this repertoire in which, once again, aristocratic patronage lies at the heart of musical creation.[+]

Concerti per Esterházy

During his first years in the service of the Esterházy princes, Joseph Haydn had every opportunity to show what he was capable of accomplishing as both instrumental soloist (on violin or keyboard!) and composer; in fact, all his concertos, most of which date from the 1760s, offer a glimpse of a brilliant artist who gradually moved away from the style galant by inventing a new musical dialogue soon to become the Classical style.[+]

BWV... or not?

Hide-and-seek with Bach. A programme of works attributed to – or transcribed by – Johann Sebastian Bach, whose common denominator is musical excellence. Amandine Beyer and Gli Incogniti pay fervent tribute to a period when copyright was unknown, but whose spirit testifies to a dazzling creative freedom that inspires the artists from beginning to end of this recording.

per due violini

Vivaldi’s double concertos resemble jousts: ‘the standards are raised, the bystanders comment, analyse, compare, speculate, the betting counter is open’, writes Olivier Fourés. But, he continues, the joust is not for real. It is ‘the stage of a theatre where two solitudes, within a group, meet up, then both size each other up and comfort each other’. There is bound to be comparison between the two protagonists, but in the end the triumph will be collective. And the least one can say is that Amandine Beyer and her illustrious guest Giuliano Carmignola have breathed new life into this dazzling form of musical theatre! [+]

Un orage d'avril

A festival of ‘musical delights’! Though the two bars of bass of a certain celebrated Canon have made Pachelbel probably the most widely performed composer in the streets of the whole world, this sparkling programme invites you to make new discoveries in his œuvre. It is built around suites (Partien) for two violins and continuo from the Musikalische Ergötzung. The title means ‘musical delight’, and indeed one cannot but be ravished by the extraordinary sonic hedonism displayed by these works... [+]

Teatro alla moda

11720: in his famous pamphlet Il teatro alla moda, the composer Marcello satirised the excesses of new-fangled Venetian opera. Cadenzas, variations, ‘divismo’, virtuosity, popular dances, assorted sound effects: nearly three centuries later, each of the ‘qualities’ he mocked has provided the inspiration for this new release from Gli Incogniti to the glory of Vivaldi. The Prete Rosso who aroused Marcello’s patrician indignation could not have cared less about such formal taboos! His experiments, his spontaneity, his juxtapositions and contrasts served only one rhetorical cause: the theatrical dimension of his instrumental music. Take your seats! [+]

Apothéoses

When he published his two Apothéoses in memory of two great masters of music in 1724-25, François Couperin was asserting his desire to promote a meeting of the French and Italian styles – from a very Gallic point of view, naturally..... [+]

MarkusPassion

The St. Mark Passion, which probably originated in the first decade of the 18th century, by a composer known until now only as "Kaiser," is only preserved in various copies. It occupies a prominent place in Bach s music library as the only music for Passion by another composer which he performed several times, usually in different forms.....[+]

The complete Concerti grossi

There is nothing surprising in the fact that Amandine Beyer and her ensemble Gli Incogniti should tackle Arcangelo Corelli's Concerti Grossi, Op. 6. Indeed, the 12 concerti making up this opus represent a form of apogee of this musical genre in the Baroque era and, at the same time, testimony to the great Italian composer's exceptional talent as a violinist and conductor. [Ver el libreto completo]

Nuova Stagione

Effervescence, humour, lyricism, explosion, concentration, contemplation, impatience, energy... The list could go on forever. Words escape me when trying to determine what fascinates in Antonio Vivaldi's music. This disc represents our particular homage to this ever so generous composer, who gratifies musicians by putting into their hands fabulous tools of diversity, emotion and effectiveness. [+]

Beatus Vir?

The voice can also sometimes flare up like a flame, an existential interrogation. ‘The “Beatus vir” of the Nisi Dominus is a perfect example of this, with its vocal line which enters so gently that it seems like a tentative question – “Beatus vir?” Is the man blessed? – and is transformed into a whirlwind of sensations, in an almost desperate cry that remains unanswered’ [+]

False consonances of Melancholy

"Amandine Beyer is a wonderfully expressive and sensitive violinist with a secure technique, clear and sonorous tone and discreet approach to ornamentation... " The Strad Magazine [+]

The four seasons

"We do get the Four Seasons but excellently performed and I would stick my neck out and say I have never heard one that satisfied me better." Michael Talbot / BBC3 radio Cd review with Andrew Mac Gregor [+]

Concerti a Violino Certato

Al mundo de la música barroca, esterilizado por el markenting, el tecnicismo y la competencia, le viene muy bien la eclosión de músicos como Amandine Beyer. Ella es una brillante virtuosa, pero sabe dar la palabra a los demás, su alegría no es ni nerviosismo ni un argumento de venta. Jamás caprichosa, no renuncia a ser ella misma, a su acento personal, a su gusto por el largo fraseo. Música en suma (incluso en Bach, podríamos añadir). Jacques Drillon - Le nouvel obs Mayo de 2007 [+]