First of a series of programmes devised by Arnold Goldsbrough
Jean Pougnet (violin)
David Martin (violin)
James Whitehead (cello)
Bernard Richards (cello)
Arnold Goldsbrough
(harpsichord)
The music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries receives less attention in present-day programmes than the music of the sixteenth century, in which for some years past there has grown up a deep and sympathetic interest. Bach and Handel, indeed, are known and loved, but to suppose that their music leads naturally and inevitably to that of Haydn and Mozart is to confess ignorance of the historical and aesthetic facts. The eighteenth century witnessed revolutionary changes in musical style and manner, the causes of which may be quite clearly stated. They are, briefly, the deterioration of opera; the growing distaste for the ' learned polyphonic ' style of Bach, and a new conception of the functions of melody and harmony; the increasing interest in instrumental combinations and the birth of the modern orchestra: and finally the new forms dictated by all these factors.
The present series of programmes will attempt to illustrate this interesting and vital period with the lesser-known works of its composers, and particularly with the undeservedly neglected English school of the time. Such works as the magnificent set of Trio-Sonatas of Arne, for instance, although virtually unknown today, serves to remind us that what Gluck called the ' noble simplicity ' of the period holds much for our delight.
HERBERT MURRILL