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"I wanted to put my long-standing passion for this rich repertoire to work here – I hope this recording will resonate with those interested in its study or who simply have the wish to discover it."

Adrien Pièce, Lausanne, September 2022

Translated from French by Michelle Bulloch – Musitext

Read more in the booklet about works and this recording

FRESCOBALDI'S MANUSCRIPTS

“Il signor Girolamo ha fatto infiniti altri volumi & continuamente ne va formando di nuovi, perché è cosi eminente in comporre che alla sprovista, come vede continuamente Roma, fa cose meravigliose; ma la fatica & spesa delle stampe non permette che si vedono in luce.”

Bartolomeo Grassi, preface to the Canzoni da Sonare by Girolamo Frescobaldi, Rome, 1628

Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643) was undoubtedly one of the most renowned 17th century organists of his lifetime. Born in Ferrara in 1583, he became organist of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome in 1608. This prestigious position was related to a significant network of patrons, to which Frescobaldi remained faithful until the end of his life. It was within this context that his music, most of which was devoted to keyboard instruments, was published: the two books of Toccate (1615 and 1617), the Capricci (1624) and the Ricercari e Canzoni (1615), among others. Frescobaldi pioneered a new virtuosity: while developing the forms already addressed by the composers who preceded him, he forged a personal language, a nuova maniera di suonare packed with ornamental figures, rhythmic contrasts and contrapuntal sophistication.

The pieces recorded here reveal a part of his production that is still largely in the shade, consisting of the keyboard pieces preserved in manuscript form. [..]

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ADRIEN PIÈCE organ & harpsichord

Adrien Pièce, born in Switzerland, graduated cum laude in the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in early keyboards harpsichord and organ (MA in Music Performance) with Andrea Marcon, Rudolf Lutz, Lorenzo Ghielmi and Jörg-Andreas Bötticher. He attended to many masterclasses with Wolfgang Zerer, Jan Willem Jansen, Michel Bignens, Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini and specialised in harpsichord teaching (MA in Music Pedagogy) with Kenneth Weiss at the Haute École de Musique de Genève.

He was awarded in various international competitions such as Paul Hofhaimer Wettbewerb Innsbruck, Concorso Internazionale di Clavicembalo di Pesaro, Concorso Organistico Internazionale di Fano Adriano.

Since 2010 he performs in many European countries on organ and harpsichord as a soloist as well as with various ensembles. He took part in various recording projects, including a live performance of the Goldberg Variations of J.S. Bach for the early music festival Resonanzen in Vienna, Wiener Konzerthaus, 2016.

His musical interests include a wide repertoire on various keyboard instruments (harpsichord, organ, clavichord and fortepiano), research improvisation, basso continuo. He started in 2016 a research project for the european doctoral programs Docartes (Leyden University) about keyboard improvisation in baroque Rome.

He is currently based in Lausanne (Switzerland) and works as a performer, researcher, teacher and organist of the church of Chavannes-près-Renens.

Radio

REVIEWS

Crescendo Magazine

« [..] Après ses recherches sur l'improvisation au clavier dans la Rome baroque, l'ancien étudiant de la Haute École de Musique de Genève nous propose ici des interprétations strictes et idiomatiques, qui contribuent à enrichir en toute pertinence notre compréhension du corpus frescobaldien et de ses transversalités. [..] » - Christophe Steyne, septembre 2023

Le Courrier

« [..] Adrien Pièce nous guide à la découverte de ce répertoire de toccate, de ricercari et canzone polyphoniques, quelques danses «courantes» et les ostinati emblématiques de l’époque (monica, ruggiero, ciaccona, aria di Fiorenza, romanesca, passacaglia). Avec un très bel équilibre entre l’envol des improvisations et une retenue propice à la clarté de l’énonciation, limpide, jamais emportée. On salue encore la qualité de la prise de son, particulièrement du deuxième disque, dédié au clavecin. » - Gianluigi Bocelli, juin 2022

Classical Music Sentinel

“[..] Swiss performer, researcher, teacher and organist Adrien Pièce brings out the authenticity and sense of discovery within these works. [..] This scholarly, as well as highly musical 2-Disc set, should be enough to convince you of Frescobaldi's innovative and at times even adventurous and groundbreaking style, which planted the seed that was to bloom and flourish into manifold creative directions only a few years later.” - Jean-Yves Duperron, February 2023

OpusKlassiek

“[..] As this double album shows, Swiss harpsichordist and organist Adrien Pièce (*1988) has immersed himself intensively in Frescobaldi's manuscripts and shows himself to be adept at both playing technique and interpretation in this repertoire shaped by him from historicising performance practice. [..]” - Aart van der Wal, September 2023

ResMusica

« [..] Il faut louer ici le jeu à la fois brillant et profond d’Adrien Pièce qui, tant à l’orgue qu’au clavecin, au-delà d’une maitrise totale des ces deux instruments, apporte un discours nourri et inspiré. Grâce à lui, un pan entier de musique nous est révélé pour une meilleure connaissance et une compréhension approfondie d’un répertoire qui se hisse largement au niveau des œuvres déjà connues et éditées du vivant de Frescobaldi. La présentation de l’album est très soignée, tant par les textes instructifs que par les prises de son, de grande qualité. » - Frédéric Muñoz, mai 2023