“Instrumental concertos for a pipe organ soloist with an orchestra first evolved in the 18th century, pioneered by composers such as Vivaldi, J S Bach and George Frideric Handel. They wrote organ concertos with small orchestras, including solo parts which rarely call for the organ pedal board. During the Classical period the organ concerto became increasingly popular and formed an integral part of the church music tradition. Handel wrote organ concertos as interludes for his oratorios - playing the organ part himself while directing the orchestra - and the style can first be heard in interior movements of his oratorio Il trionfo del Temp e del Disinganno (‘The Triumph of Time and Truth’). This was Handel’s very first oratorio and a landmark in baroque music, completed in 1707. This is included as the first work on this intriguing CD along with three early organ concertos by J S Bach (1685-1750). Bach was a composer and organist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra and solo instruments brought together almost all of the strands of the baroque style and brought it to its ultimate maturity. He enriched the prevailing German style with a robust and dazzling contrapuntal technique, a seemingly effortless control of harmonic and organization from the smallest to the largest scales, and the adaptation of rhythms and textures from abroad, particularly Italy and France. Bach’s forceful suavity and vast output have earned him wide acknowledgment as one of the greatest composers in the Western tonal tradition, revered for his music’s intellectual depth, technical command and artistic beauty. In Bach’s case it has been assumed that the concerto evolved from instrumental sinfonias from his cantatas. Organist Matthew Dirst, however, demonstrates another possibility - concerts in Dresden (1725) before the cantata sinfonias were written. Prepared from the earliest sources, Dirst and the excellent Ars Lyrica ensemble have reconstructed the musical soundscape of this important event, which ultimately spawned Bach’s most popular harpsichord concerto. Noted for his stylish playing of Baroque music in particular, praise for Matthew Dirst and Grammy-nominated Ars Lyrica include ‘a technically dazzling, deeply moving performance’ - Houston Chronicle.

Review from New Classics (UK)