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RECITAL REVIEW

Harpsichordist Larry Palmer at the Creative Arts Series May 22 Recital

PALMER'S MOSTLY BAROQUE HARPSICHORD RECITAL CLOSES CREATIVE ARTS SEASON

by Glendon Robert Frank
Sunday, May 22, 2011

An enthusiastic audience of thirty heard harpsichordist Larry Palmer May 22 in recital at Santa Rosa’s Resurrection Parish, the final concert of the Creative Arts Series season. The artist presented a program with a variety of works from the baroque period, seasoned with two suites written by contemporary composers for the instrument. Between selections on the program Mr. Palmer provided brief but informed commentary.

He opened the recital with the Buxtehude’s Præludium in G minor, BuxWV 163. Known primarily for his organ compositions, Buxtehude is an important figure in the development of the pre-Bach North German style, and as a young man Bach studied briefly with Buxtehude at the Marienkirche in Lübeck. Buxtehude’s influence can be detected in Bach's later preludes, fugues, and toccatas, and this Præludium is written in the “Fantastic style” where sectional phrases are interspersed with florid, improvisatory writing, and it ended with a lively gigue with an abrupt, surprising conclusion.

The second selection was the Seven Innocent Dances (1996) by Rudy Davenport. These seven short movements, character sketches really, are not more than a few minutes each in length, and explore the sound possibilities of the harpsichord. This is pleasing contemporary writing for the instrument, with themes of casualness, resolve, playfulness, fire, pomposity, and steadiness.

The Passacaglia in D minor by Johann Kaspar Ferdinand Fischer followed and Fischer’s writing is similar to that of Buxtehude and Bach. Mr. Palmer explained to the audience the nature of a passacaglia – variations over a repeating bass line. In an interesting aside, he mentioned that this piece could be interpreted as a musical description of the Orpheus legend.

Following intermission, the program continued with the Tombeau de Monsieur Blancrocher by Couperin. Written as a memorial to the lutenist Charles Fleury, a quiet, improvisatory reflectiveness and air of mourning was beautifully depicted. Mr. Palmer dedicated this performance to the memory of William Neil Roberts of Los Angeles, one of the builders of the harpsichord used in Sunday's recital.

Bach's early Capriccio on the Departure of his Beloved Brother, BWV 992, was next on the program. This work is a musical description of an actual Bach family event, and written in programmatic, sectional style. Following was the Trifles Suite, composed in 1999 by Glenn Spring. These seven movements are musical miniatures, similar to the short movements of the Davenport suite earlier in the program. This time, the movements included a take on the blues, as well as a burlesque.

The final piece was Bach's Toccata in E minor, BWV 914, the shortest of Bach's seven keyboard sonatas. This beautiful work is highly sectional, with florid, dramatic writing followed by a recitative (Adagio) and finally a driving and dramatic fugue.

The performances were of the highest quality with beautiful phrasing, fine articulation, flowing lines and dramatic interpretation of the demanding literature. The artist’s years of experience and dedication to the instrument and its music were evident in his beautiful playing.

The harpsichord used for Sunday's recital was built in 1988 in Los Angeles by Roberts and Brazier, and owned by local musician Beth Zucchino. This beautiful Flemish double (a two-manual instrument) is fully decorated in an historic fashion, with hand-printed papers lining the keyboard and inside the lid, and a wonderful painted soundboard depicting birds, flowers, and bees.