Graf:
Sinfonia I & III – Cello Concertos No. 1 & 2

Abel:
Cello Concerto C major

The life and work of Christian Ernst Graf (1723-1804) remains largely unexplored – a striking fact given the outstanding quality of the works that have been re-discovered and recorded. Little is known about Christian Ernst’s life in his birth town Rudolstadt before he moved to the Netherlands. In the 1750s, he became a composer at the court of Princess Anna van Hannover (1709–1759), widow of stadtholder Willem IV (1711–1751), and at the Court of His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange. Graf’s compositional idiom is characterized by an almost modern sensibility and inventiveness, both expressive and brilliant in style – qualities that are apparent in the two violoncello concertos presented on this SACD. Like Marin Marais in his viola da gamba pieces, Graf explored the virtuosic possibilities of the violoncello to its limits. Founded in 1983 as one of the earliest German early music ensembles, L’arpa festante has developed an outstanding reputation. One of the ensemble’s main interests is the rediscovery and historically informed performance of forgotten works from the 17th Century and the Classical era as well as the symphonic and oratorio repertoire of the Romantic era.