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For the cover insert, after cutting, fold down the middle and slide behind the clear plastic front surface. For the tray card, remove the front of the jewel case, and then carefully separate the CD holder from the clear plastic back surface. It’s a little tricky, but you’ll get the hang of it. Suggestion: use a fingernail to separate the two parts by inserting your nail between the clear and black plastic along the right (back) spine of the jewel case. Press the clear part down and away from the black. Then, after cutting the tray card insert, fold it along the two black lines to create the spine panels, drop it into the clear plastic back, and replace the black plastic CD holder. Reposition the front of the jewel case, being careful not to break the hinges, and voilà!

Finally, the last pages of this document offer program notes, texts, and translations.

1.2.3.

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JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750): TRANSCRIPTIONS OF ITALIAN MUSICBenita Valente soprano – Judith Malafronte alto

John Butt, Phebe Craig, Jonathan Dimmock, Jeffrey Thomas harpsichordsAMERICAN BACH SOLOISTSJeffrey Thomas, conductor

Concerto for Four Harpsichords

Violino iElizabeth Blumenstock (leader)Olga GussowJolianne von Einem

Violino iiKatherine KymeSandra SchwarzLisa Weiss

Viola

David MillerGeorge Thomson

Violoncello

Elisabeth LeGuin

Violone

Steven Lehning

cembalo

John ButtPhebe CraigJonathan DimmockJeffrey Thomas

Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden

Violino iElizabeth Blumenstock (leader)Olga GussowRobert SeletskyJolianne von EinemLisa Weiss

Violino iiLisa GrodinPeter KupferMichael SandSandra Schwarz

Viola

David Daniel BowesSally ButtKatherine KymeDavid MillerGeorge Thomson

Violoncello

Sarah FreiburgElisabeth Le GuinAlyssa Pava

contrabasso

Michelle BurrSteven Lehning

organ

Jonathan Dimmock

cembalo

John Butt

conducted by

Jeffrey Thomas

recording engineer & editor

Peter Nothnagle

Producer

John Miner & Peter Nothnagle

recorded may 7-11, 1993St. Stephen’s ChurchBelvedere, CA

THE MUSICIANS

JEFFREY THOMASmusic director

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACHTRANSCRIPTIONS OF

ITALIAN MUSIC

Concerto for Four Harpsichords, BWV 1065(Vivaldi: Concerto for Four Violins)

Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden, BWV 1083(Pergolesi: Stabat Mater)

Benita Valente, soprano - Judith Malafronte, alto

MASTERWORKS SERIES

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Concerto in A Minor for Four Harpsichords, BWV 1065 (9:40)

transcription of Vivaldi: Concerto in B Minor for Four Violins, Op. 3 No. 10, RV 580

1 [Allegro] (3:53)2 Largo (2:12)3 Allegro (3:35)

John Butt, harpsichord IPhebe Craig, harpsichord IIJonathan Dimmock, harpsichord IIIJeffrey Thomas, harpsichord IV

Psalm 51: Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden, BWV 1083 (39:07)

transcription of Pergolesi: Stabat Mater

4 Largo - Verse 1, soprano & alto (3:48)5 Andante - Verse 2, soprano (2:33)6 Larghetto - Verse 3, soprano & alto (2:30)7 Andante - Verse 4, alto (2:15)8 Largo - Verses 5-6, soprano & alto (2:07)9 Verse 7, soprano & alto (0:37)bl Verse 8, soprano (3:48)bm Verse 9, alto (2:34)bn Allabreve - Verse 10, soprano & alto (2:26)bo Andante - Verses 11-15, soprano & alto (5:36)bp Adagio spirituoso - Verse 16, alto (3:32)bq Largo - Verses 17-18, soprano & alto (3:10)br Allegro (Vivace) - Verses 19-20, soprano & alto

(2:14)bs Allabreve - soprano & alto (1:57)

Benita Valente, sopranoJudith Malafronte, alto

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750): TRANSCRIPTIONS OF ITALIAN MUSICBenita Valente soprano – Judith Malafronte alto

John Butt, Phebe Craig, Jonathan Dimmock, Jeffrey Thomas harpsichordsAMERICAN BACH SOLOISTSJeffrey Thomas, conductor

© 2006 American Bach SoloistsCover Art: Detail from Benozzo Gozzoli’s frescoes in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, Florence

americanbach.orgTexts, translations, and notes for this recording are available online at: americanbach.org/magnatune

page � © 2006 American Bach Soloists

JEFFREY THOMASmusic director

support materials for our recording of

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (�685-�750): TRANSCRIPTIONS OF ITALIAN MUSICBenita Valente soprano – Judith Malafronte alto

John Butt, Phebe Craig, Jonathan Dimmock, Jeffrey Thomas harpsichordsAMERICAN BACH SOLOISTSJeffrey Thomas, conductor

Concerto in A Minor for Four Harpsichords, BWV 1065

Inthespringof1729Bachwasoffered,andtook,thedirectorship of one of Leipzig’s two collegia—semi-professional musical performance societies—thus beginning an association that was to last until 1741. This group, which could be adapted to the performance of anything secular from chamber music tosmall-orchestral/choralworks,hadbeenfoundedin1702bytheredoubtableTelemann,andwasafixtureofthelivelymiddle-class musical life in Leipzig, frequently hiring out to cityandCourtfunctions,andmaintainingascheduleofweeklymeetings,opentothepublic,atZimmermann’scoffeehouse.Bach’s concerti for various numbers of harpsichords wereproducedaround1730forthisvenue.ThesoloistswereBachand (depending on the number of harpsichordists required) his sons Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel; in the solitary case of the concerto for four harpsichords, the remainingseatmayhavebeenfilledbyBach’spupilJohannLudwig Krebs.

“Produced” is a safer word than “written” in thecase of this music, for all but one of the harpsichord concerti are Bach’s adaptations or re-workings of concerti for otherinstruments. The four-harpsichord concerto uses not himself butVivaldiasamodel,namelytheConcertoforFourViolins,op.3no.10.BachleavesVivaldialoneasfarasstructureandmaterial, confining his alterations to a key change (fromBminor toAminor) and some redistribution and thickeningofthesoloparts.Theeffectisoneofheighteningthework’salready lively textures sometimes to thepoint of a kindofcheerfulfreneticism,likeaquadruplecontinuogonemad,asinthemiddlesectionoftheslowmovement,ortheappealingcross-rhythms of the last.

Psalm 51: Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden

Bach’s adaptation of Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater is one of the more interesting appropriations in musical history, largely byvirtueofitssheerunlikelihood.ForthemucholdermastertohaveextendedhimselfinthedirectionofaworkbyayoungItalian,aCatholicatthat,andonewhosefirstfamehadcomewith a work whose every impulse ran directly counter toBach’s aesthetics, morals, and musical training—the famous La Serva Padrona—well, this is odd. Why would Bach choose such a project?

GiovanniBattistaPergolesihaddiedattheageof26in 1736, about a decade before Bach made his arrangement of theStabatMater,whichwasprobablyPergolesi’slastwork.Inthesixorsoyearsofhisprofessionalcareer,Pergolesiwrotequantities of music for both church and stage, and managed what most composers (including Bach) do not in a life three timesaslong:real,huge,blockbustersuccess,innotonebuttwoworks,eachinadifferentgenre.La Serva Padrona, scarcely anopera,moreanextendedscena, in the new, spare, sardonic Italian style, was still enormously, controversially popularthirty years after its composer’s death; the StabatMater isthought to have hadmore printings than any other singlepiece of eighteenth-century music (not to mention its many incarnationsinarrangementsandre-textings,ofwhichBach’sisonlyone.)Pergolesi’sgeniusisamplymanifestinhisdeft,sweet-natured music; but it also clearly lay in his uncanny abilitytosensethe“nextwave,”whatpeoplewanted,cravedinfact,tohear.Tastewasshiftingawayfromthepainstaking,the profound, the monumental; in sacred music, the “antique style” based in the austerities of 16th-century was increasingly felttoexpressonlythemoreremoteandinstitutionalqualitiesofreligion. TheStabatMaterprovidedalinktosomethingmore personal, more (as Hiller, one of its admirers and adapters,putit)“sensitive.”Itdoesthisbyincorporatingtheovertlyemotionalgesturesand formulasof thenew Italianopera into an overtly traditional framework, comprised ofa thirteenth-century liturgical poem, and a certain amount of contrapuntal writing (or at least, contrapuntal-sounding: Pergolesimanages to give a remarkableGestalt of the 16th century without actually burdening himself or us with any real fuguesorextendedimitation.)Thecombination,predictably,offendedconservatives,whofounditvulgarorirreverent;butthepublicationandperformancehistoryoftheworkatteststo just how much of a minority those conservatives werebecoming,andtojusthowexpertlyPergolesi’sworkhad“hitthe spot.”

Copies of the Stabat Mater probably reached Bach’s environsintheearly1740s;theywouldhavebeenprecededby its reputation. As a lifelong composer of sacred music, and alifelongnegotiatorofitsinherentconflictsbetweenpersonaland impersonal, sensual and austere, human and divine,Bachseemstohavefoundthisnotoriousnewwork,andthecompromiseitrepresented,moreintriguingthanoff-putting,despitehisownstaunchconservatism. Whatbetterwaytoreallygettoknowitthantoadaptifforuseathome?

page 2 © 2006 American Bach Soloists

The motet Bach made out of the Stabat Mater is his soleessayintoappropriatingmusicsounlikehisownineveryway(saveinitscapacityforaestheticingenuity.)Hishandlingof Pergolesi’s work is wonderfully circumspect, basicallyamountingtoareplacementoftheoriginaltear-soakedLatinpoem, about the sorrows and compassion of Mary at the foot ofthecross,withanequallytear-soakedGermanoneaboutthesorrow and contrition of an unworthy sinner. The two poems arearemarkablygoodmatchonamovement-by-movementbasis.Agooddealoftheoriginalword-paintingcarriesoverinto its new text (particularly satisfying examples can beheardinmovement3,at“Missetäten,”andinmovement12,at“Herz und Geist, voll Angst und Grämen”); this might support the theory that Bach himself made the German adaptation of the psalm.

Most of the musical alterations consist of Bach’s substitution of texted, active lines for Pergolesi’s melismasand long messe di voce for the singers; thesemost explicitlyoperaticqualitiesareexchangedforsomethingalittlemoreinstrumental,alittlelessflagrant.Thefinal“Amen” is repeated inthemajormode(anoddandslightlyclunkyamendment),and movements 12 and 13 are reversed from Pergolesi’sordering;themostextensivealteration,however,isasubtleonetotheear.BachliberatestheviolafromitsItalianroleasareinforcementofthebassandgivesitanindependentpart—

indeed,agloriouslyactiveone,thatenrichesthetextureofthewhole ensemble and ups the contrapuntal ante by some few degrees. The addition of a new part to an already complete composition, without doublings or redundancies, is an old and formidablecontrapuntalexercise,whichBachaccomplishesherealmostasanafterthought,orasifhesimplycouldnotresist.

- © 1993 Elisabeth Le Guin

PERFORMANCE NOTES

Borrowing from performance practice of some Italian orchestralmusic,weusewhatwouldhavebeenforBacharather large orchestra in our performance of the Psalm 51. Amongtherelativelyrecentlydiscoveredpartsforthisworkare ones marked “Violino Primo,” “Violino Primo Ripieno,” “Violino Secondo,” and “Violino Secondo Ripieno,” suggesting that Bach was pleased with the idea of adding additional instruments to facilitate a fuller sound. As in the case of some ofthecantatas,separatepartsforharpsichordandorganexist,once again supporting the notion of dual accompaniment. And although the lowest part is indicated as “Violon,” we use ‘cellos and Italianate doublebasses.

-JeffreyThomas

Psalm 51: Tilge, Höchster, meine SündenSoprano, Alto, Violins, Viola, Basso continuo

4 Largo - Verse 1 (soprano, alto)

Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden,deinen Eifer laß verschwinden,laß mich deine Huld erfreun.

Blot out, O God, my sins, let your zeal disappear, and let me rejoice in your grace.

5 Andante - Verse 2 (soprano)

Ist mein Herz in Missetatenund in große Schuld geraten,wasch es selber, mach es rein.

Andwhenmyheartisfilledwithtransgressionsandbur-denedwithgreatguilt,washityourselfandmakeitpure.

6Larghetto-Verse3(soprano,alto)

Missetaten, die mich drücken,muß ich mir itzt selbst aufrücken;Vater, ich bin nicht gerecht.

Imustalwaysthinkofmytransgressionsandtheyweighon me. Father I am unjust.

7 Andante - Verse 4 (alto)

Dich erzürnt mein Tun und Lassen,meinen Wandel muß du hassen,weil die Sünde mich geschwächt.

My deeds and actions anger you and you hate my conduct, formysinshaveweakenedme.

8 Largo - Verses 5 and 6 - (soprano, alto)

Wer wird seine Schuld verneinenoder gar gerecht erscheinen?Ich bin doch ein Sündenknecht.

Wer wird, Herr, dein Urteil mindern,oder deinen Ausspruch hindern?Du bist recht, dein Wort ist recht.

Who denies his guilt or pretends to be righteous? I cer-tainlyamaslaveofsin.

Whowill,Lord,lessenyourjudgementorpreventyourpronouncements? You are just, your word is just.

9 Verse 7 (soprano, alto)

Sieh! Ich bin in Sünd empfangen,Sünde wurde ja begangen,da wo ich erzeuget ward.

page � © 2006 American Bach Soloists

See,Iwasconceivedinsin,andwrongwasdonewhereIwasbegotten.

bl Verse 8 (soprano)

Sieh, du willst die Wahrheit haben,die geheimen Weisheitsgabenhast du selbst mir offenbart.

See,youwantthetruth,andyouyourselfrevealedtomethe secrets of wisdom.

bm Verse 9 (alto)

Wasche mich doch rein von Sünden,daß kein Makel mehr zu finden,wenn der Isop mich besprengt.

Do wash me pure from sins, so that no more blemish can be found when I am splashed with hyssop.

bnAllabreve-Verse10(soprano,alto)

Laß mich Freud und Wonne spüren,daß die Gebeine triumphieren,da dein Kreuz mich hart gedrängt.

Your cross pressed hard on me; now let me feel joy and bliss and let the body triumph.

bo Andante - Verses 11-15 (soprano, alto)

Schaue nicht auf meine Sünden,tilge sie, laß sie verschwinden,Geist und Herze mache neu.

Stoß mich nicht von deinen Augenund soll fort mein Wandel taugen,o, so steh dein Geist mir bei.

Gib, o Höchster, Trost ins Herze,heile wieder nach dem Schmerze.Es enthalte mich dein Geist.

Denn ich will die Sünder lehren,daß sie sich zu dir bekehrenund nicht tun, was Sünde heißt.

Laß, o Tilger, meiner Sünden,alle Blutschuld gar verschwinden,daß mein Loblied, Herr, dich ehrt.

Donotlookonmysins,blotthemout,letthemvanish;makespiritandheartnew.

Do not cast me from your eyes, and stand by me to help my conduct be good.

Give,OGod,comforttomyheart,healagainaftersuffer-ing. Let me be part of your spirit.

BecauseIwanttoteachthesinnerstoconvertthemselvestoyou, and not to do as sin teaches

Let,redeemer,allmysinsandblood-guiltbegoneforever,so that my songs of praise honor you, Lord.

bp Adagio spirituoso - Verse 16 (alto)

Öffne Lippen, Mund und Seele,daß ich deinen Ruhm erzähle,der alleine dir gehört.

Open lips, mouth and soul, that I tell of glory which is yours alone.

bq Largo - Verses 17 and 18 (soprano, alto)

Denn du willst kein Opfer haben,sonsten brächt ich meine Gaben,Rauch und Brand gefällt dir nicht.

Herz und Geist, voll Angst und Grämen,wirst du, Höchster, nicht beschämen,weil dir das dein Herze bricht.

Youwantnooffering,orIwouldbringmygifts.Youdonotlikesmokeorburning

Heartandsoul,inanguishandgrieving,you,OGod,willnotputtoshame,becausethatwouldbreakyourheart.

brAllegro(Vivace)-Verses19and20(soprano,alto)

Laß dein Zion blühend dauern,baue die verfallnen Mauern,alsdann opfern wir erfreut,

Alsdann soll dein Ruhm erschallen,alsdann werden dir gefallenOpfer der Gerechtigkeit.

LetZioncontinuetoblossom,rebuildthewallsthathavegonetoruins,thenwewillofferwithjoy.

And then shall all your glory resound, and then you will be pleasedwiththeofferingsofrighteousness.

bsAllabreve-(soprano,alto)

Amen.

Amen.

(Translation: Vera Lucia Calabria)

page � © 2006 American Bach Soloists

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT:

americanbach.org

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

TheAmericanBachSoloistsareextremelygratefultothefollowingindividualswhogenerouslylenttheirharpsichordsfor use in this recording of the Concerto in A Minor for Four Harpsichords:

Phebe CraigElizabethDavidsonDr.PeterStrykersJaneStuppin

AllfourinstrumentswerebuiltbyJohnPhillips,forwhoseassistanceweareextremelygrateful.

JOHNPHILLIPSHARPSICHORDS933 Grayson StreetBerkeley,CA94710

(510) 549-2272www.jph.us