Van Diemen's Band & Martin Gester - Handel: 6 Concerti grossi, Op. 3 (2021) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: I. Vivace
02. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: II. Largo
03. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: III. Allegro
04. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: IV. Tempo di minuetto
05. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: V. Gavotte
06. Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: Ia. Largo e staccato
07. Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: Ib. Allegro
08. Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: II. Adagio
09. Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: III. Allegro
10. Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: I. Grave
11. Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: II. Allegro
12. Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: III. Adagio
13. Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: IV. Allegro ma non troppo
14. Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: V. Allegro
15. Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: Ia. Vivace
16. Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: Ib. Adagio
17. Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: II. Allegro
18. Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": I. Andante
19. Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": II. Andante
20. Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": III. Allegro
21. Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": IV. Minuetto alternativo
22. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: I. Allegro
23. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: II. Largo
24. Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: III. Allegro



What we know as "Handel’s Opus 3" is most likely little more than a brazen attempt by the London publisher John Walsh to make some quick money. In 1715, Walsh had issued a pirated edition of Corelli’s 12 Concerti grossi, Op. 6 which proved an instant success and left him constantly looking for similar opportunities. Almost 20 years later, perhaps in the knowledge that the royal protection granted to Handel’s musical output was about to expire, Walsh assembled a set of six orchestral pieces for a wide range of instruments. He prefaced them with a wholly misleading title-page – based on Corelli’s style-defining collection – and advertised them as Handel’s "Opera Terza".

It is likely that Handel never took part in the selection and organization of the individual movements, although he may have been involved in the revisions made when a reprint was necessary a few years later. Selected from various sources, the six concertos certainly don’t form an organic cycle – in complete contrast to the future Op. 6 concerti grossi, which Handel carefully conceived as a set. The fact remains that Opus 3 contains some of Handel’s best-loved music, in instrumental combinations that are colorful and often unexpected – aspects that Martin Gester and his musicians in the Tasmanian period band Van Diemen’s Band make the most of.

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