Handel's Salon with Carol Lieberman & Mark Kroll
Carol Lieberman and Mark Kroll bring three of their favorite sonatas for violin and harpsichord by the three iconic composers of the Baroque: Handel, J. S. Bach and D. Scarlatti. Bach and Handel never met, but, according to Mainwaring, Handel did meet Scarlatti in Rome around 1708 or 1709, at the palace of Cardinal Ottoboni, where the two young virtuosos engaged in a friendly competition on organ and harpsichord. Both were declared winners. Bach and Handel’s works for the violin need little introduction, but a violin sonata by Scarlatti, who is best known for his harpsichord works, might come as a surprise. It shouldn’t. Scarlatti wrote a considerable amount of excellent music for instruments and voices, including operas.
Music of Bach, Handel and Scarlatti
Carol Lieberman – Baroque Violin
Mark Kroll – Harpsichord
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord in A major, BWV 1014
Dolce
Allegro
Andante ma non poco
Presto
George Frederick Handel (1685-1759)
Sonata in D-major for Violin and Harpsichord, HWV 371
Affetuoso
Allegro
Largo
Allegro
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord in D minor, K. 90
Grave
Allegro
[Allegro] Allegro
Carol Lieberman
Carol Lieberman, recognized as one of America’s leading exponents of Baroque violin performance for the past 50 years, is equally acclaimed for her command of the violin repertoire from the 19th to the 21st centuries.
The scope of Ms. Lieberman’s versatility can be seen by her performances of the complete Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord of J.S. Bach in Lisbon, Madrid, Rome, Paris, and throughout the United States, and her numerous concerts of works by romantic and contemporary composers. Her recordings include not only the Bach Violin sonatas, but also works by C.P.E. and J.C. Bach; Dohnanyi; Schubert; Biber; Elliott Carter; and Olivier Messiaen. A reviewer of her most recent album, The Art of Carol Lieberman, a 2-CD compilation from her recordings on both Baroque and modern violin, summarized these accomplishments: “the great American violinist Carol Lieberman…is a world-class artist with a bold, distinctive sound… she is a violinist’s violinist, a teacher, a concertmaster, and a champion of lesser-known works, both as a soloist and a chamber musician.”
Carol Lieberman’s concert tours have taken her throughout Europe, North and South America, and the Middle East, and include appearances with major music festivals, and as concerto soloist in the violin concertos of Sibelius, Brahms, Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, Vivaldi and Bach.
The first violinist to receive the DMA degree from the Yale University School of Music, Ms. Lieberman is currently Professor emerita at the College of the Holy Cross.
Mark Kroll
Mark Kroll’s distinguished career as a performer, scholar and educator spans a period of more than fifty years. He has appeared as a harpsichordist and fortepianist in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia; performed as concerto soloist with the world's major orchestras; and served as harpsichordist for the Boston Symphony from 1979-2008. His extensive list of over 40 recordings includes a recent release of the complete pièces de clavecin of François Couperin; several CDs of contemporary American harpsichord music; and Dutilleux’s Les Citations with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players.Equally active as a scholar, Kroll has published eight books, among them Bach, Handel and Scarlatti: Reception in Britain 1750-1850; The Cambridge Companion to the Harpsichord; Playing the Harpsichord Expressively; The Boston School of Harpsichord Building; The Beethoven Violin Sonatas; and ground-breaking biographies of Ignaz Moscheles and Johann Nepomuk Hummel (which was just published in a second, completely revised edition by Hudobné Centrum, Bratislava, in both English and in a Slovakian translation). Kroll has also published numerous chapters and articles on a variety of subjects. and scholarly editions of the music of Hummel, Avison, Junker, and Geminiani.A dedicated educator, Kroll is Professor emeritus at Boston University, where he served for twenty-five years as Professor of Harpsichord and Chair of the Department of Historical Performance. He continues to teach and lecture in universities and conservatories throughout the world.
