Juilliard Faculty Recital: Bart Feller

Early Saturday evening, I attended a short pre-college faculty recital - only about forty minutes in length - given at Paul Hall by flautist Bart Feller.  It was an all-Handel program that began with three sonatas and ended with an early cantata.  Feller was accompanied in his performance by cellist Loretta O'Sullivan and harpsichordist Robert Wolinsky.

The first three works on the program consisted of the Sonata in C major, HWV 365 (c. 1712), the Sonata in F major, HWV 369 (c. 1712) and the Sonata in E minor, HWV 359b, originally composed as a violin sonata (c. 1724).  The three are also referred to, respectively, as Op. 1, Nos. 7, 11 and 1b and were, according to Wikipedia:

"...first published in or shortly after 1726—in a collection of twelve sonatas titled Sonates pour un Traversiere un Violon ou Hautbois Con Basso Continuo Composées par G. F. Handel—purportedly in Amsterdam by Jeanne Roger, but now shown to have been a forgery by the London publisher John Walsh.  Walsh republished this sonata in 1731 or 1732 under his own imprint in a similar collection, containing ten of the earlier sonatas and two new ones, with the new title Solos for a German Flute a Hoboy or Violin With a Thorough Bass for the Harpsichord or Bass Violin Compos'd by Mr. Handel."

In performing these pieces Feller used a modern flute with a wooden holder attached to its front while cellist O'Sullivan played what looked like a Baroque cello even though there had been placed at its base the spike that allows the instrument to be placed on the floor rather than held between the knees as is customary with period instruments.

After having performed these works, the musicians briefly stepped offstage and then returned with soprano Ilana Davidson to perform the cantata Nel dolce dell' oblio, HWV 134 (1707-1708).  Handel was only about age 21 or 22 when he composed this work and was at the time living in Rome.  Although Handel had shortly before written several operas while sojourning in Florence, where he had been invited by Ferdinando de'Medici, operas of any type were banned during this period in the Papal States and Handel was consequently limited to the production of cantatas and oratorios.  The work took classical mythology as its source, as was customary in the Baroque era, and was quite pleasant to hear.

The recital was an informal affair - Feller addressed the audience from the stage regarding the material played and the instruments used - and enjoyable enough that I wished it had been longer in length.  It's always a treat to hear Handel's music, especially when played so well.