My Choice Lorenzo Ghielmi

• Nikolaus Bruhns (1665 - 1697): Praeludium in E Minor "Groß":
• 1 Bruhns: Praeludium in E Minor "Groß" 08:43
• Giovanni Battista Fontana (1589 - 1630): Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Major, F 1475.02:
• 2 Fontana: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Major, F 1475.02 05:59
• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Prelude in A Minor, BWV 922:
• 3 Bach: Prelude in A Minor, BWV 922 05:42
• Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080 (Excerpts):
• 4 Bach: Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080 (Excerpts): Contrapunctus I 02:31
• 5 Bach: Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080 (Excerpts): Contrapunctus XIV "Fuga à 3 soggetti" 08:25
• Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 - 1788): Fantasia in A Major, Wq. 58 No. 7, H. 278:
• 6 Bach: Fantasia in A Major, Wq. 58 No. 7, H. 278 04:33
• Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856): 6 Studien in kanonischer Form, Op. 56 (Excerpts):
• 7 Schumann: 6 Studien in kanonischer Form, Op. 56 (Excerpts): No. 5, Nicht zu schnell 02:21
• 8 Schumann: 6 Studien in kanonischer Form, Op. 56 (Excerpts): No. 6, Adagio 03:24
• Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897): 11 Chorale Preludes, Op. 122 (Excerpts):
• 9 Brahms: 11 Chorale Preludes, Op. 122 (Excerpts): No. 9, Herzlich tut mich verlangen [Version 1] 01:25
• 10 Brahms: 11 Chorale Preludes, Op. 122 (Excerpts): No. 10, Herzlich tut mich verlangen [Version 2] 02:35
• Johann Sebastian Bach: Herzlich tut mich verlangen, BWV 727:
• 11 Bach: Herzlich tut mich verlangen, BWV 727 02:17
• Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 639:
• 12 Bach: Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 639 02:15
• Hans Kotter (b. 1966): Kochersperger Spanieler:
• 13 Kotter: Kochersperger Spanieler 02:47
• 14 Sounds of Bells (Field Recording) 00:40
• Arvo Pärt (b. 1935): Annum per annum:
• 15 Pärt: Annum per annum 08:50
• Total Runtime 01:02:27

Info for My Choice

Organist, harpsichordist, fortepiano pianist Lorenzo Ghielmi and cellist Paolo Beschi, as well as Aarón Zapico, the conductor and musical director of the Spanish Baroque ensemble Forma Antiqva, belong to generations of musicians who internalize, continue and enrich anew the artistic understanding of historical performance practice evoked by Alice and Nikolaus Harnoncourt. Harnoncourt's ensemble Concentus musicus, founded in the 1950s, and the text collections "Musik als Klangrede: Wege zu einem neuen Musikverständnis" ("Music as speech: ways to a new understanding of music") from Nikolaus Harnoncourt's essays, lectures and talks revolutionized the music world and revealed a new understanding of music that has lost none of its significance to this day.

Through my musical education under Elisabeth and Konrad Ruhland at the musical St. Gotthard Grammar School of the Benedictines Niederaltaich, I came into contact with this movement at an early age. Even though Ruhland's name is rarely mentioned in the same breath as Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Gustav Leonhardt or other pioneers of Early Music: Elisabeth and Konrad Ruhland are among the masterminds and trailblazers of historical performance practice.

This youth of mine, along with other important experiences I gained in the 80s in New York working with protagonists of the avant-garde jazz scene, influenced the musical direction of WINTER & WINTER. Together with Mariko Takahashi, I have been running WINTER & WINTER since the mid-90s. The opening of the label features a new interpretation by Paolo Beschi of Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Solo Suites. Paolo Beschi is one of the founders of the group Il Giardino Armonico, to which Lorenzo Ghielmi and Enrico Onofri also belongs, and in addition to solo activities, he leads La Gaia Scienza together with his wife and musical partner Federica Valli; this ensemble is dedicated primarily to the repertoire of the 19th century. On WINTER & WINTER numerous recordings are made with Paolo Beschi, Federica Valli and La Gaia Scienza.

Inspired by these recordings, which are so special both interpretatively and sonically, Lorenzo Ghielmi contacted WINTER & WINTER at the turn of the millennium. Shortly after the first acquaintance, a highly exciting collaboration begins. Under the direction of WINTER & WINTER, various albums are recorded by Lorenzo Ghielmi as a soloist, in collaboration with the viola da gamba ensemble of his brother Vittorio Ghielmi and with Federica Valli on fortepiano. In 2021/2022 WINTER & WINTER celebrates 25 years of recording art, for this reason we ask selected recording artists to pick key works from the collaboration and create their Director's Cut "My Choice".

Lorenzo Ghielmi spans, if one puts his selection "My Choice" in a chronological order, from the Renaissance composer Hans Kotter (1480-1541), to the early baroque, represented by Giovanni Battista Fontana (1589-1630), via organ pieces by Nikolaus Bruhns (1665-1697) to works of the (late) baroque by Johann Sebastian (1685-1750) as well as Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788) and leads via Robert Schumann (1810-1856) and Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) to the sound world of the present by Arvo Pärt (1935).

Ghielmi's "My Choice" thus presents compositions from the entire epoch of the modern period. These recorded works do not reveal a historical retrospective, but rather he deals with outstanding texts of past centuries that are still as relevant today as when they were written, interpreting them in a contemporary way without nostalgic contemplation of the past. His playing on original instruments reveals sounds that have lost none of their avant-garde power. He radically breaks with the musical pigeonholing of our listening habits. Thus Lorenzo Ghielmi plays together with Federica Valli two pieces by Robert Schumann on a Conrad Graf fortepiano from 1827 with a very special sound that no contemporary Steinway with steel strings can produce. It is not about museum-like sounds, but about contemporary interpretations that speak to us today, stimulate debate and touch us. Every instrument, every single specially selected organ, every recording location and therefore its characteristic acoustics, every participant have been deliberately chosen for every single recording work. Lorenzo Ghielmi can be heard not only as a soloist, but also with Federica Valli, the viol consortium of his brother Vittorio Ghielmi (Il Suonar Parlante) and in trio with Enrico Onofri and Margret Köll.

Of particular note, in addition to Lorenzo Ghielmi's sound speech, is his continuation of Bach's Contrapunctus XIV from Die Kunst der Fuge ("The Art of Fugue"). Lorenzo Ghielmi completes Bach's unfinished composition. (Stefan Winter)

Lorenzo Ghielmi, organ, Silbermann fortepiano, cembalo
Enrico Onofri, violin
Margret Köll, harp
Federica Valli, fortepiano
Il Suonar Parlante:
Vittorio Ghielmi, soprano and bass viol
Rodney Prada, tenor viol
Fahmi Alqhai, bass viol
Cristiano Contadin, great bass viol

Lorenzo Ghielmi
has dedicated may years of his career to the study and performance of Renaissance and Baroque music. As one of the leading specialists for Baroque keyboard instruments of our times worldwide he has performed all over Europe, in Japan, Canada and the United States, and has made numerous solo-recordings for broadcast and CD.

Starting his international career as founder member of the famous group Il Gardino Armonica he in 2005 decided to dedicate more time to his solo playing and own projects, and founded his ensemble La Divina Armonia, with which in the meanwhile he realised numerous recordings, for instance organ concertos by Handel (two parts, both distinguished with the diapason d‘or in France, part II even with de Diapason d'année) and Haydn, the Passion after St. John by Francesco Feo as well as music by Bach.

The ensemble was invited to many of the most important festivals and stages for Early Music in Europa, amongst others the Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht (where they were Artist in Residence in 2017), Osterfestival Hall in Tirol, Salzburger Bachfest, Bozart Brussels, as well as to Oslo or Bruges.

Ghielmi teaches organ, harpsichord and chamber music at the Accademia Internazionale della Musica in Milan. From 2006 until 2015 he also held the chair of organ professor at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. Furthermore he is the organist of the Basilica of San Simpliciano in Milan.

Besides he published a book on Nicolaus Bruhns, and several essays on organ building in the 16th and 17th centuriers and on performing Bach‘s music.

Booklet for My Choice