Henry Purcell Suites for Harpsichord

DUX 1437
• Suite No. 1 in G major, Z. 660 • Suite No. 2 in G minor, Z. 661 • Suite No. 3 in G major, Z. 662 • Suite No. 4 in A minor, Z. 663 • Suite No. 5 in C major, Z. 666 • Suite No. 6 in D major, Z. 667 • Suite No. 7 in D minor, Z. 668 • Suite No. 8 in F major, Z. 669

The music of the English Virginalists (virginal is a smaller variety of harpsichord) dating back to the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries served as an inspiration for the French harpsichord style, which, after several years, returned to Great Britain, already as French music. It was adopted in such a mature form by the most outstanding composer born in England. Henry Purcell, conscious of the music’s sources, enriched it with subsequent references to native musical traditions and with his own original compositional technique. The extremely meticulous interpretations of eight harpsichord suites by Purcell, performed by Ewa Rzetecka-Niewiadomska, convincingly confirm the artistry and aesthetic value of these compositions, plenty of charm and stylistic treats, which, however, due to extra-musical reasons, are on the margin of the mainstream of the history of music.

CD DUX 1437Total time: [54:34]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 1 in G major, Z. 660

1. Prelude

[0:42]

2. Almand

[1:19]

3. Corant

[1:01]

4. [Minuet]

[1:07]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 2 in G minor, Z. 661

5. Prelude

[1:20]

6. [Almand]

[4:03]

7. Corant

[1:41]

8. Saraband

[2:15]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 3 in G major, Z. 662

9. Prelude

[1:17]

10. Almand

[3:30]

11. Courante

[1:45]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 4 in A minor, Z. 663

12. Prelude

[0:53]

13. Almand

[2:51]

14. Corante

[1:32]

15. Saraband

[1:48]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 5 in C major, Z. 666

16. Prelude

[1:12]

17. Almand

[2:46]

18. Corant

[1:09]

19. Saraband

[1:21]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 6 in D major, Z. 667

20. Prelude

[0:57]

21. Almand

[3:28]

22. [Hornpipe]

[1:16]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 7 in D minor, Z. 668

23. Almand ‘Bell-barr’

[5:21]

24. Corant

[1:27]

25. Hornpipe

[0:49]

Henry Purcell

Suite No. 8 in F major, Z. 669

26. Prelude

[0:53]

27. Almand

[3:23]

28. Courante

[2:08]

29. Minuet

[1:09]

Performers:
Ewa Rzetecka-Niewiadomska /harpsichord/

composers	Purcell, Henry ∎
performers	Rzetecka-Niewiadomska, Ewa ∎
Releases Year	2017