Topic: Clavichord recordings you like.

[Mandryka]

I am really enjoying the recording of Boehm's 6th suite played by Gustav Leonhardt on the clavichord, on this astonishingly good Sony CD. The sound is so intimate and the instrument so beautifully colourful. The music is great too.

He recorded the same music for harpsichord too -- IMO the clavichord is much more alluring.

I want to hear more clavichord music – so recommendations would be very much appreciated.

[Bulldog]

Richard Troeger has recorded 4 volumes of "Bach on Clavichord" for the Lyrichord Early Music label.  My favorite is his Art of Fugue which also comes with the Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue and a couple of other works on a 2cd set.

[Antoine Marchand]

Jaroslav Tůma has some excellents recordings on clavichord (Arta Records). He has recorded, for instance, the Goldberg Variations (2-CD set, first disc on two clavichords, second one on harpsichord) and The Well-Tempered Clavier (4 CDs), called there The Well-Tempered Clavichord:

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/v7IyetFoUkI" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/v7IyetFoUkI</a>

Goldberg Variations

Tůma plays on two clavichords: the first one is an instrument built in 2004 and based on an original of 1761 by David Tannenberg and chosen as the lower manual for the pair of clavichords. On it stood the second one: a small instrument that is a copy (2002) of a clavichord of 1787 built by Christian Gottlob Hubert of Ansbach.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/1oOyXgNL6HU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/1oOyXgNL6HU</a>

The Well-Tempered Clavichord Book 1.

Clavichord built by Martin Kather from Hamburg in 1999, after the David Tannenberg manuscript from 1761.

Some additional info HERE.

[Scarpia]

Jaroslav Tůma has some excellents recordings on clavichord (Arta Records). He has recorded, for instance, the Goldberg Variations (2-CD set, first disc on two clavichords, second one on harpsichord) and The Well-Tempered Clavier (4 CDs), called there The Well-Tempered Clavichord:

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/v7IyetFoUkI" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/v7IyetFoUkI</a>

Goldberg Variations

Tůma plays on two clavichords: the first one is an instrument built in 2004 and based on an original of 1761 by David Tannenberg and chosen as the lower manual for the pair of clavichords. On it stood the second one: a small instrument that is a copy (2002) of a clavichord of 1787 built by Christian Gottlob Hubert of Ansbach.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/1oOyXgNL6HU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/1oOyXgNL6HU</a>

The Well-Tempered Clavichord Book 1.

Clavichord built by Martin Kather from Hamburg in 1999, after the David Tannenberg manuscript from 1761.

Some additional info HERE.

All appear to be out of print, or at least unavailable in the US. 

I mentioned this one on another thread, it is also out of print, but hyperion sells it as a download.



Book I is on clavichord.   

Here's an interesting thing that I used to have on vinyl.

[Antoine Marchand]

All appear to be out of print, or at least unavailable in the US. 

I mentioned this one on another thread, it is also out of print, but hyperion sells it as a download.

I purchased my discs directly on Arta Records. They use a secure server, you can pay with American dollars and in my case the discs arrived without problem.

JPC is another option, but sometimes they don't have stock, usually the price duplicate Arta and, additionally, shipping and handling costs are criminal, if you don't buy a big amount (flat rate). 

[Scarpia]

I purchased my discs directly on Arta Records. They use a secure server, you can pay with American dollars and in my case the discs arrived without problem.

Listened to a few excepts on their web site, and they sound attractive.   But I must say I am astonished by a company that ostensibly makes its living by selling recordings, but which doesn't have the wherewithal to distribute their product through normal channels or at least list them on amazon. 

[Mandryka]

Richard Troeger has recorded 4 volumes of "Bach on Clavichord" for the Lyrichord Early Music label.  My favorite is his Art of Fugue which also comes with the Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue and a couple of other works on a 2cd set.

I'd quite like to hear some more Bach. I like Kirkpatrick, but his instrument is so slick. It must be thoroughly modernised.

Leonhardt in the Boehm suite I love so much plays a more characterful instrument. Less beautiful that AK's,  but you miss something.

[Bulldog]

Listened to a few excepts on their web site, and they sound attractive.   But I must say I am astonished by a company that ostensibly makes its living by selling recordings, but which doesn't have the wherewithal to distribute their product through normal channels or at least list them on amazon.

I don't know.  From what I read from time to time, even on this board, there are many companies that don't distribute through "normal channels".  The reasons for such a marketing strategy are beyond me.

[Gurn Blanston]

I'd quite like to hear some more Bach. I like Kirkpatrick, but his instrument is so slick. It must be thoroughly modernised.

Leonhardt in the Boehm suite I love so much plays a more characterful instrument. Less beautiful that AK's,  but you miss something.

Well, I don't go back to that older stuff. If you have an interest in the Classical Era clavichord works, I have a lot of disks by Haydn and CPE Bach and a few by Mozart that are commendable. Let me know if you are interested in that era. The clavichord lived on into the early 19th century and some composers (like Haydn for example) used them for most of their composition work.

[Scarpia]

I don't know.  From what I read from time to time, even on this board, there are many companies that don't distribute through "normal channels".  The reasons for such a marketing strategy are beyond me.

I suspect many are motivated by a desire to capture the entire purchase price, rather than share profits with a distributor or retailer.  However, I don't appreciate that they apparently want to get this additional profit at the expense of my convenience.  I'm not anxious to give my credit card information to a myriad of retailers and restrict myself to amazon and a few other internet stores that offer good values.

In the end it's up to them, but I can't believe wider distribution wouldn't allow them to make more money by selling more units at a reduced margin.

[Bulldog]

I suspect many are motivated by a desire to capture the entire purchase price, rather than share profits with a distributor or retailer.  However, I don't appreciate that they apparently want to get this additional profit at the expense of my convenience.  I'm not anxious to give my credit card information to a myriad of retailers and restrict myself to amazon and a few other internet stores that offer good values.

In the end it's up to them, but I can't believe wider distribution wouldn't allow them to make more money by selling more units at a reduced margin.

Okay.  I suppose that if I wanted a disc badly enough, I would purchase from one of those "no middle-man" companies.  Actually, I have done just that, but only a few times.

[Bulldog]

Well, I don't go back to that older stuff. If you have an interest in the Classical Era clavichord works, I have a lot of disks by Haydn and CPE Bach and a few by Mozart that are commendable. Let me know if you are interested in that era. The clavichord lived on into the early 19th century and some composers (like Haydn for example) used them for most of their composition work.

One of them is a Haydn/Cerasi disc on Metronome where she plays a fortepiano as well.

[Gurn Blanston]

One of them is a Haydn/Cerasi disc on Metronome where she plays a fortepiano as well.

Yup. That's a nice disk, I had to wait a few months for its release but worth it.



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Now playing:
Manchester Camerata \ Perkins & Boyd - Weber Op 35 Andante e Rondo Ungarese for Bassoon 1st mvmt - Andante

[Mandryka]

Here's a pretty complete list of clavichord recordings. It's not totally reliable, it doesn't have Ilton Wjuniski's recording of Spanish music, for example.

http://www.clavichord.info/clavkult_media.html

[Mandryka]

Here are some  I like, mostly 16th century music

I think there are some good things in his WTC, and some boring things. He's an annoyingly variable performer -- he goes from sublime to drab. And I'm feeling very pleased to have Michael Tsalka's Goldbergs too.

and the other volume

Tilney also has some WTC 1 on clavichord which I've not heard (I'm not crazy about his WTC 2 on harpsichord.) And he has a CPEB disc which I have heard but I don't like the music much.

I intend to rehear Troeger's Bach soon, I remember feeling quite positive.

There seems to be a huge variation from one clavichord to the next. Some clavichords I haven't warmed to -- like the one that Clemencic uses for Cabezon. And sometimes I've just not got into a clavichord recording because the same music is better (by the same performer even) on other instruments (I'm thinking about Leonhardt's Bohm, Peter Ella's Sweelinck)

 

[XB-70 Valkyrie]

Ralph Kirkpatrick playing Book II of the WTC. (Bk. I he recorded on harpsichord)

[Jo498]

I never heard one live, cannot stand it on recordings. I got rid of the WTC II by Kirkpatrick despite its merits because I never listened to it as I disliked the sound. I dislike the clavichord disc in Schornsheim's Haydn box. I think I have another Capriccio disc with CPE Bach on harpsichord, don't like the sound either.
It seem to be impossible to capture that sound of the instrument on recordings in a way I can listen to without being distracted by the side noises or other features of sound production. Maybe I should try a newer recording by a supposedly "audiophile" label like MDG; problem is that listening to sound samples online usually does not help because those can sound horrible, even when the recording in question does not.

[Mandryka]

Does Siegbert Rampe play clavichord on any of his Mozart recordings?

[Gurn Blanston]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Cl9j0-WPns

I have been following this guy on Youtube for a long time. He is outstanding, and the instrument is nicely recorded. He does a series on recording experiments, and after he posts, he does another vid a couple of days later to talk about the piece and the particular challenges or interesting points in playing/recording. He is a very nice guy too, and if you want to talk to him, he will answer your questions very freely.

[k a rl h e nn i ng]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Cl9j0-WPns

I have been following this guy on Youtube for a long time. He is outstanding, and the instrument is nicely recorded. He does a series on recording experiments, and after he posts, he does another vid a couple of days later to talk about the piece and the particular challenges or interesting points in playing/recording. He is a very nice guy too, and if you want to talk to him, he will answer your questions very freely.

Cool.