Before coming to Sweden, the Italian-born harpsichordist Anna Paradiso knew little about Johan Helmich Roman, often called 'the father of Swedish music'. Here she soon realized that if Roman's music was Swedish, it was also Italian - and specifically Neapolitan, her own part of Italy: The restlessness of the harmonic idiom, the continuous shifts from one melodic gesture to another, the absence of long and balanced phrases, the theatrical character. Roman had spent five years in London as a young man before returning to Stockholm to take up his duties at the Royal Court. Fourteen years later, 1735-37, he was once more able to sample the newest trends in music in person, during a two-year sabbatical spent travelling across Europe, with Ischia, near Naples, as his goal. It would seem that many, or most, of the twelve keyboard sonatas were composed around this time or later. Why he wrote them is not known, however, nor what instrument they were intended for. In 1746, shortly after he had retired, Roman assembled the pieces, each consisting of between three and seven movements, in a single manuscript. They remained unpublished, however, and as Roman did not provide any titles to them, they have since been referred to both as 'suites' and 'sonatas'. Whatever the label, this fascinating collection is a testimony of a period of great stylistic diversity and change, as observed by a composer who, although geographically relegated to the outskirts of Europe, remained wide-open to new developments. On this, the first of two discs, Anna Paradiso emphasizes this aspect of the composer, performing the first seven sonatas of the set on three different instruments - a French and an Italian harpsichord and a copy of a clavichord built in Sweden in 1742 - with well-judged ornamentations and use of rubato.

Tracklist:

Harpsichord Sonata No. 1 In E-Flat Major, Beri 225: I. Allegro
Harpsichord Sonata No. 1 In E-Flat Major, Beri 225: II. Adagio
Harpsichord Sonata No. 1 In E-Flat Major, Beri 225: III. Non Tanto
Harpsichord Sonata No. 1 In E-Flat Major, Beri 225: IV. Vivace
Harpsichord Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Beri 226: I. Allegro
Harpsichord Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Beri 226: II. Lento Non Troppo
Harpsichord Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Beri 226: III. Allegro Moderato
Harpsichord Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Beri 226: IV. Non Troppo Allegro
Harpsichord Sonata No. 2 In D Major, Beri 226: V. Presto
Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 In G Major, Beri 227: I. Largo
Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 In G Major, Beri 227: II. Allegro Moderato
Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 In G Major, Beri 227: III. Allegretto
Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 In G Major, Beri 227: IV. Allegro Assai
Harpsichord Sonata No. 3 In G Major, Beri 227: V. Menuet
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: I. Lento
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: II. Carillon: Allegro
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: III. Non Troppo Adagio
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: IV. Allegro Moderato
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: V. Allegretto
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: VI. Presto
Harpsichord Sonata No. 4 In D Major, Beri 228: VII. Villanella
Harpsichord Sonata No. 5 In G Minor, Beri 229: I. Con Spirito
Harpsichord Sonata No. 5 In G Minor, Beri 229: II. Allegro Moderato
Harpsichord Sonata No. 5 In G Minor, Beri 229: III. Lento
Harpsichord Sonata No. 5 In G Minor, Beri 229: IV. Vivace - Lento
Harpsichord Sonata No. 5 In G Minor, Beri 229: V. Andante Ad Libitum
Harpsichord Sonata No. 6 In B-Flat Major, Beri 230: I. Allegro
Harpsichord Sonata No. 6 In B-Flat Major, Beri 230: II. Andante
Harpsichord Sonata No. 6 In B-Flat Major, Beri 230: III. Vivace
Harpsichord Sonata No. 7 In F Major, Beri 231: I. Moderato
Harpsichord Sonata No. 7 In F Major, Beri 231: II. Vivace
Harpsichord Sonata No. 7 In F Major, Beri 231: III. Allegro

UPC: 7318599920955
Label: Bis
Release Date: 2.10.15
Format: CD

Roman / Paradiso - 12 Keyboard Sons 1-7 (CD)