Teatro Imaginario

Domenico Scarlatti (Composer), HARPSICHORD (Orchestra), PATRICE MATHEWS (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: PATRICE MATHEWS
• Orchestra: HARPSICHORD
• Composer: Domenico Scarlatti
• Audio CD (February 24, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: CDBY
• ASIN: B00008OE4T
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #319,975 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Presto in A major, K24

2. Allegro in F# minor, K25

3. Allegro in D major, K119

4. Allegro in E major, K135

5. [Allegro] in E minor, K147

6. Andante allegro in F major, K151

7. Allegro in G major, K413

8. Andante in D minor, K213

9. Allegro in C major, K487

10. Andante in F minor, K238

11. Allegro in F minor, K239

12. Allegro in C# minor, K247

13. Allegro in A major, K268

14. Allegro in E major, K531

15. Allegro in A minor, K532

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Second Landowska. Top Drawer!, March 31, 2003

By 

Daniel Hirschhorn (Teaneck, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Teatro Imaginario (Audio CD)

A harpsichordist friend, with several well-recieved recordings of his own, practically begged me to get this CD, saying it was simply the best Scarlatti he'd heard, on the harpsichord or off. I'd thought he was going way overboard... until I heard it. While I'm not ready to cast away my Horowitz yet, this is in a similar league, as pure music-making.

Rarely have I encountered a performer so at one with her instrument (which is *amazingly* well recorded) and her material. Mathews' playing has both a transparency and a a 'bite' which is difficult to render into words. It's the very opposite of glib, if that makes any sense.

The selection of works is off-beat, which is a huge plus. There are a few of the chestnuts which everyone seems to play, but most of the album seems to be a highly personal choice. Certainly the best CD I've purchased in the last year, and probably longer.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scarlatti like new, March 26, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Teatro Imaginario (Audio CD)

This CD is a gem. The playing is intelligent, well-structured and personal,the music making is imbued with the most wonderful sense of timing and nuance, moving freely within the strict formal boundaries of this music. Music-making which is scenic, declamatory and energetic.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Scarlatti Recording of the Decade. Luminous., March 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Teatro Imaginario (Audio CD)

When you hear this record, you're led to ask "Just where has Patrice Mathews been?" A bit of snooping (including the VGO recordings web site) indicates this is her first commercial recording. It shows, and in the very best sense: Mathews' assured, astute and 'deep' playing reflects decades of probing and familiarity with Scarlatti, in all his range and passion. Unlike so many virtuosos who regard Scarlatti as a Poor Person's Bach, or whip it into a frenzy to get it to work on the piano, Mathews' razor-sharp inflections and glassy evenness -- one is led to compare her with Argerich here -- let each work emerge on its own terms.

This is not to say her playing exhibits a one-size-fits-all approach. Rather the opposite: her range is literally astonishing. From the kaleidoscopic, ebullient jangle of the opening work and D major allegro, to the wintry landscape of the F# minor, to the almost bleak contours of the D minor andante, to (perhaps my favorite) the irrepressible quirkiness of the C major allegro, one is aware of a great artistic presence, with a technique perfectly matched to its instrument.

If your idea of Scarlatti is Horowitz and Pletnev, you owe it to yourself to hear this very special recording, which is, if there is any justice in the music world, destined for fame. Highly, highly recommended.