Classical Music | Music for Fortepiano

Domenico Scarlatti

Sonata in c minor, K. 129  Play

David Schrader Fortepiano

Recorded on 12/01/1997, uploaded on 02/12/2009

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Scarlatti on Fortepiano sheds new light on Domenico Scarlatti's keyboard sonatas and the early piano, or "fortepiano," of the composer's own time. The fortepiano, available to Scarlatti (1685-1757) in the royal palaces of Spain, was part of his sonic world. Yet the many Scarlatti sonata recordings on the market typically employ harpsichord or modern piano.

Paradoxically, most fortepiano recordings offer music of the Classical and early Romantic periods, many of whose composers were starting to outgrow the early piano's capabilities, observes recording producer Jim Ginsburg. "On fortepiano, Scarlatti's baroque sonatas present the performer with interpretive opportunities, rather than constraints," he says.

Keyboard artist David Schrader, a virtuoso on both harpsichord and fortepiano, says he tried to select, from among Scarlatti's 550 sonatas, those that benefit from the fortepiano's unique sound and its ability to employ "dynamic variation for the purpose of phrasing." Some of these sonatas (actually single-movement exercises) are quintessentially Spanish, while others show Scarlatti's "Roman" Italian side.

More music by Domenico Scarlatti

Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata K. 391
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata K. 87
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in E minor L.22 K.198
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in D Major, K. 492
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in B minor L.33 K.87
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in e minor, K. 98
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata K. 159
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in D major, K. 119

Performances by same musician(s)

Antonio Soler
Quintet No. 6 in G Minor
Antonio Soler
Sonata No. 24 in D minor
Johann Sebastian Bach
Harpsichord Concerto in d minor
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in C Major, K. 513
Giovanni Battista Ferrandini
Il Pianto di Maria

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