Méditation

Andreas Staier’s informed and inspired interpretations have left their mark on the discography of both the harpsichord and the fortepiano and have enabled us to see Bach, Mozart and Schubert in a completely new light. This is Staier’s first solo album of a projected series for Alpha Classics, in which he also presents his own compositions for the first time. “Two motifs connect the works in this recording: the first is a ancient cantus firmus, a melody in long notes […] the second is the interval sequence of octave, fifth, sixth, and third. […] Anklänge , my six pieces for harpsichord, grew out of several conversations I had with the composer Brice Pauset about what it means to compose in our time, and in particular what it implies to compose for historical instruments. This led me to ask myself how I could express and capture my own conception of music in notes, marked as it is not only by Byrd, Bach and Schubert, but also by the music of the 20 th and 21 st centuries."

Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (1656-1746) , Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741) , Louis Couperin (1626-1661) , Johann Jacob Froberger (1616-1667) , Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) , Andreas Staier

• Bach, J S: Prelude & Fugue Book 2 No. 9 in E major, BWV878
• Couperin, L: Pavane in F sharp minor
• Fischer, J K F: Ariadne Musica: No. 16, Prelude & Fugue in A major
• Fischer, J K F: Ariadne Musica: No. 2, Prelude & Fugue in C sharp minor
• Fischer, J K F: Ariadne Musica: No. 4, Prelude & Fugue in D major
• Fischer, J K F: Ariadne Musica: No. 8, Prelude & Fugue in E major
• Froberger: Fantasia II a-moll FbWV 202
• Froberger: Méditation faite sur ma mort future, la quelle se joue lentement avec discretion, à Paris 1 mai Anno 1660
• Froberger: Ricercar IV, FbWV 404
• Fux: Gradus ad Parnassum: Fugue