Pergolesi : Stabat Mater, arrangements pour piano, Scarlatti : Sonates pour piano

Description

The German pianist Marie-Luise Hinrichs gained recognition through two albums dedicated to the rarely performed Sonatas of Martin Soler. Looking back in the timeline, she today selects a few Sonatas by Scarlatti that benefit from the same qualities: attention to nuances, a deep touch on the keyboard that takes its time to sing, and a departure from pure virtuosic displays. However, the pièce de résistance of this recording is a transcription for solo piano (by Hinrichs) of the famous Stabat Mater by Pergolesi. The work opens with an emotional lament where the two sopranos intertwine dissonances like irrepressible tears. From this Baroque tableau, which serves as a pretext to paint a mother's tears, only a sketch, an outline, remains in the piano version. It retains the vocal lines and harmony from the original while leaving aside not only the string accompaniment figures but also the violence of the original text. One can appreciate the intelligence in the use of ornaments as well as an impressive fugue (Fac ut ardeat cor meum). The pianist reveals connections with Scarlatti (slow and melodic sections: movements 3 and 5) or Vivaldi (Largo movement 12). An original endeavor, but one that keeps the pain of the original score at a distance. (Thomas Herreng)