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CD reviews
"Welcome Home, Mr Dubourg"
Anna Devin, sopranoa;
Rachel Kelly, mezzo-sopranob;
Edward Grint, bassc;
Sophie Gent, violind
Irish Baroque Orchestra & Chorus
Dir: Peter Whelan
rec: May 2 - 3 & August 13 - 15, 2018, Edinburgh, North Leith Parish Church; London, St Jude-on-the-Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb
Linn Records - CKD 532 (© 2019) (60'58")
Liner-notes: E; lyrics - no translations
Cover, track-list & booklet
Spotify
Arcangelo CORELLI (1653-1713):
Sonata for violin and bc in A, op. 5,9, with ornaments by Matthew Dubourgdj;
Matthew DUBOURG (1703-1767):
Concerto for violin, strings and bc in Dd;
Crowned with a more illustrious light, Ode for Dublin Caste, 1739abh;
Dubourg's Maggotdfg;
Ode for Dublin Castle, 1740 (Now the mingling hosts engage)chi;
Ode for Dublin Castle, 1741? (Trumpet tune)e;
Ode for Dublin Castle, 1743 (Soft breathes the melting flute)a;
Ode for Dublin Castle, 1753 (Hibernia's sons, your voices raise);
trad:
Ciste nó stórd;
Eileen Aroon, with variations set by Mr Dubourgj;
Antonio VIVALDI (1678-1741):
Concerto for two violins, strings and bc in A (RV 519)df;
Charlotte Trepess, soprano;
Martha McLorinan, mezzo-soprano;
Michael Bell, Toby Ward, tenor;
Brian McAlea, bass
Katy Bircher, Miriam Kaczor, transverse flute;
Simon Munday, trumpet (soloe);
Claire Duff (solof), Huw Daniel (solog, Anita Vedres, Henry Tong, Leonie Curtin, Therese Timoney, violin;
Alfonso Leal del Ojo, viola;
Sarah McMahon (soloh), Jonathan Byers, Gulrim Choď, cello;
Malachy Robinson, Christine Sticher, double bass;
Carles Cristobal, bassoon (soloi);
Elizabeth Kenny, Alex McCartney, lute;
Philippe Grisvard (soloj), Jan Waterfield, harpsichord, organ;
Alex Petcu, timpani
From the late 17th century until well into the 19th, London was one of the main musical centres of Europe. It had a lively and multi-faceted music scene, and the importance of music printing was also a factor of importance. For many performing musicians and composers, it was the place to be. Since the publication of the sonatas and concerti grossi by Arcangelo Corelli, music lovers and performers were under the spell of the Italian style. It resulted in a fertile ground for performers and composers from Italy and from other parts of Europe, where the Italian style had been embraced. During the first half of the 18th century England saw an influx of composers from the continent. The most prominent of them was George Frideric Handel, who soon played such an important role in music life that many composers and performers were connected to him in one way or the other, for instance because they played in his opera orchestra. Many of them are hardly known as composers in their own right.
One of them is Matthew Dubourg. He has at least the honour of being the subject of an anecdote, which gave this disc its title. When he played a cadenza, in which he moved through different keys and more or less lost his way, Handel greeted his return to the home key with a loud exclamation: "You are welcome home, Mr Dubourg!" Handel very much appreciated his colleague, and included him in his will.
Dubourg was a virtuosic violinist, who has been almost exclusively known as a performer. This disc is a musical portrait, which shows him in this capacity, but also as a composer. Sadly, little of his output has been preserved, and large parts of what has come down to us, are incomplete. The Concerto in D for violin is written in the Italian style, but Dubourg prefers the 'old' four-movement structure to the new Vivaldian model. It is known that he himself played Vivaldi, which is documented through the latter's Concerto in A for two violins. Dubourg was also one of several composers and performers who added their ornaments to Corelli's Violin sonatas Op. 5. Charles Burney accompanied him in one of them, and here the Sonata No. 9 is included as an example. The vocal items pay tribute to his activities as a composer from 1728 onwards, when he was appointed Master and Composer of State Music in Ireland. In this position he was responsible for the composition and performance of Birthday Odes. In this capacity he succeeded Johann Sigismund Kusser (Cousser) and these Odes are in the tradition of the Odes and Welcome Songs of Henry Purcell. One of Dubourg's Odes has been reconstructed for this recording, and from others we get extracts.
In his time, many composers showed interest in traditional music, from Ireland and from Scotland. Dubourg was one of them; he was one of the first who performed such tunes in his own arrangements in public concerts. The programme includes several examples. The disc ends with a kind of gimmick: Sophie Gent plays a cadenza, and at the end we hear a voice, probably Peter Whelan's, exclaiming: "Welcome home, Mr Dubourg!"
In recent times I have encountered several recordings of the Irish Baroque Orchestra, which include music that does not exactly belong among the standard repertoire. That makes them particularly interesting and meaningful additions to the discography. That is also goes for the present disc. It rightly puts a brilliant musician in the spotlight, who made quite an impression in his time. It is just sad that so little of his music has been preserved, and one has to hope that more will come to the surface and that some of his compositions can be restored for performance. The interpreters do him justice here. The playing of the orchestra is excellent, and Sophie Gent deserves praise for her solos. The singers are also doing well, but I regret that Anna Devin and Rachel Kelly use quite a bit of vibrato, which I find hard to swallow. That said, this disc fully deserves any music lover's attention.
Johan van Veen (© 2023)
Relevant links:
Anna Devin
Edward Grint
Rachel Kelly
Irish Baroque Orchestra