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Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Sonata per violino e cembalo obbligato in si minore BWV 1014

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Sonata per violino e cembalo obbligato in re maggiore Wq.71

Sonata per violno e cembalo obbligato in sol minore H.545

Johann Sebastian Bach
Sonata per violino e cembalo obbligato in mi Maggiore BWV 1016

Simon Pierre, violino
Clément Geoffroy, clavicembalo

Ingresso ad offerta consigliata di 12/15€

For their first collaboration, Simon Pierre and Clément Geoffroy tackle a pinnacle of chamber music: the sonatas for violin and obbligato harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach. Less known to the general public than the sonatas and partitas for solo violin or the works for solo harpsichord, they nevertheless contain some of the most moving gems and pages written by Bach. Their originality is in the title: “obligated harpsichord” (or “concertant harpsichord”, depending on the version). Unlike all the others written for violin and basso continuo, which leave great freedom to the harpsichord, which then accompanies the solo violin, these set aside improvisation and put the two instruments on the same level. The movements that compose them are mostly written in the form of trio sonatas, the harpsichordist playing two voices and the violinist one. They are all beautifully constructed and the motifs invented by Bach intersect, accumulate, respond to each other in brilliant sets of counterpoint. This is what makes them particularly demanding, as the sound balance between a violin and a harpsichord can be fragile when it comes to playing the same themes. We must therefore always be listening, everyone must be aware of everything, as if the two performers were one. For some movements, the Cantor leaves out this trio form and creates powerful accompaniment formulas to serve melodies he adorns in unimaginable ways, equaling the Italian violin masters.

A young French harpsichordist, Clément Geoffroy studied at the CNSM in Paris and was also particularly marked by the teaching of Bertrand Cuiller and Pierre Hantaï and Blandine Rannou. He has since collaborated with several ensembles such as Pygmalion, La Rêveuse, Opera Fuoco, les Cris de Paris, Les Surprises, Le Poème Harmonique… He is a founding member of l’Escadron Volant de la Reine with whom he explores the forgotten pages of Italian vocal and instrumental music.

As a soloist, he is an ardent defender of the music of the 17th century and he goes off the beaten track by regularly devoting himself to playing on two harpsichords with Loris Barrucand with whom he recorded their transcriptions of Jean-Féry Rebel (Les Caractères d’Ulysse for CVS), Jean-Philippe Rameau (Les Fêtes Persannes, for CVS) and Johann Sebastian Bach (Bach sous les Tilleuls, L’Encelade) or Gwennaëlle Alibert with whom he recorded and edited their transcriptions of Antonio Vivaldi (Sonatas and Concertos, for L’Encelade). Clément has taken part in numerous discographic recordings in orchestra, chamber music or on two harpsichords. Released in 2018, his first solo album dedicated to Johann Adam Reincken was a resounding success with his peers and critics, and the second one, “Flamboyant Bien-Aimé” (CVS) is recording of the year 2024 according to the deutschen Schallplattenkritik.