Five years ago when Krista Feeney joined Charles Brink, Loretta O’Sullivan and Andrew Appel as a member of the Four Nations Ensemble the excitement and chemistry of the new quartet inspired one of the Ensemble’s Trustees to offer a large gift and say “Make a recording as soon as possible.”
To be fair to the generosity and enthusiasm, “as soon as possible” was not soon. Four strong personalities with clear ideas, a passionate commitment to music and artistic (aka stubborn) spirits needed to live together a while before settling into a sound that was coherent and comfortable.
“As soon as possible” is now! Five years later, the Ensemble has decided to enter the world of Jean Marie Leclair, one of the most delicious, witty, refined, and sensuous of French composers, all rooted in an annoyingly condescending personality as evidenced in the prefaces to his collection of works for violin, flute, and continuo. As he tells us what he intends and wants from us as interpreters, he also makes it clear that he has little respect for our own inclinations, our natural talent, or anything else we may bring to his table!! How strange that such a consistently annoying man could write such gracious music at every phrase. Little wonder he was murdered, probably by his nephew, though his former wife was a suspect, in front of his house!
Well, today we can smile at his grumpiness, and do our best to live up to the exquisite charm in his scores. On July 31st and August 1st, Charlie, Loretta and I, with David Walters as engineer and producer Barbara Wolf, went into session with the two flute sonatas from book four of Leclair’s collections. We record at St. Mary’s in Hudson. NY. This Gothic building is particularly fine for music. The large sanctuary would have been built in stone had the 1929 depression not altered budgets making stone construction too expensive. Instead, the room is plaster, faux stone, giving us the spacious sound of a gothic nave but the warm acoustic of plaster. Thanks to Father Bath who has always welcomed us for our projects.
As an invitation to "stay tuned" here is an unedited outtake from the session. Please forgive our failings even if Leclair would not!
Our next installments will be two sonatas for violin and continuo from the same gorgeous volume and the second Recreation de Musique for flute, violin and continuo.
