Customer Reviews

Telemann: The Six Paris Quartets

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Six quartets for flute and continuo were composed by Telemann [1681-1767] as early as 1730 in Germany and achieved enough success to be "pirated" and printed in 1736, without his knowledge, by the unscrupulous French publisher Le Clerk. Undaunted, the increasingly popular Telemann "refurbished" the works during a brief sojourn in Paris in 1738, re-titled them the "Nouveaux quatuors en six suites a une flute traversiere, un violon, une basse de viole ou violoncelle et basse," vastly more impressive, and proceeded to publish them himself. The impetus to improve his lot obviously forced the composer to stretch the boundaries of his creative abilities, as well. The six "Paris Quartets," as they have been nicknamed, are pinnacles not only of Telemann's oeuvre, but also of the entire Baroque chamber repertoire.

The bi-centennial anniversary in 1967 of Telemann's death, launched by record companies such as Telefunken and Nonesuch, sparked an incredibly overdue renaissance of the composer's neglected output. Music heretofore unheard came before an omnivorous classical public, of which I was one. And such music! Grand productions (Tafelmusik, Water Music, Overtures), glorious concertos for almost every instrumental combination, and a vast assortment of chamber works, most notably the "Paris Quartets."

I would expect that the Quattro Amsterdam two-LP version of these works (with Bruggen, Schroder, Bylsma and Leonhardt) was the introduction for the majority of us, and it was elucidating. These performances, which have since been transferred to a mid-priced "twofer" on Teldec, have remained without competition; that is, until the arrival of this beguiling new bargain set with Hazelzet, Huggett and the ensemble Sonnerie. Did I say, "bargain"? With playing as attuned, charming and intimate as this, and with music as attractive, melodious and seductive, this set is a bonafide steal.

There is no easier, nor alluring way to come to know Telemann's chamber works, than through his endearing, perky, warm and memorable "Paris Quartets." I envy all his or her first hearing.

[Running time--- CD 1: 60:40 CD 2: 57:42]

This 2-CD set is wonderful. I was not familiar with Telemann's music before I bought this set, but soon fell in love with his music afterwards. The music is light, soothing, and addictive. I frequently find myself whistling the tunes from quartet no.5 at work. The music on these CD's are typical of Telemann's later compositions. These compositioins are good example of the transition from late Baroque to early Classical. Oh yeah, the orchestration is also excellent. You can hear and distinguish every instrument. Well, I may not be a good writer, but I know good music when I hear it, and this is certainly one such good music!

During their respective lifetimes Georg Philipp Telemann and Johann Sebastian Bach were at one point considered for the same musical post. Those in charge selected Telemann, which does not speak well for the concept of search committees in general. However, it is easy to hear from this CD, which presents some of the former's most successful (during his lifetime) chamber works, the so-called "Paris" Quartets, why contemporary musicians might have preferred Telemann's music. These works, for combined solo string and wind instruments and continuo, are in several movements, always carefully crafted, melodious, and utterly easy on the ear. The variations that conclude the A minor quartet are a good representation of Telemann's elegant style. All of the suites are superbly played here by a group of musicians that includes the estimable Baroque violinist Monica Huggett.

Those prepared to make finer distinctions among the wealth of eighteenth-century music may find a double CDs worth of Telemann a wee bit soporific, lacking the bracing vigor and drive of the best of Handel or the chromatic passion and superb intellect of Bach. Nevertheless, for those in search of the best possible performances of these agreeable pieces, they've come to the right place.

Having heard so many mediocre performances of Telemann, I'd come to think of him as the most over-rated rediscovered genius of early music. In fact, I've been shunning concerts and new CDs of his work for years, and I've laughed smugly at the standard musicologist's tale of how Telemann was chosen for a prestigious musical position over Bach. Listening this recording of Ensemble Sonnerie, I find that the laugh is on me. Oh, not entirely; the six "Paris" quartets for flute, strings and harpsichord are vivacious and inventive, and structurally brilliant, but far from profound. Though all six quartets are presented together here, it would do them a great disservice to listen to them in a row, something comparable to playing six rounds of miniature golf with the same 10-year-old partner. Still, there's no denying that for galante music, Telemann is masterful, especially when performed by musicians who know and feel his temperament. Sonnerie features exactly such historically informed musicians, led by violinist Monica Huggett, whose fiddling is always both restrained and emotive. Listening to their spirited ensemble, I can at least imagine how some audiences of the 18th C might have been more charmed by Georg Philipp than by Johann Sebastian.

Some info I didn't know about this cd till I bought it:

Wilbert Hazelzet: Flute
Monica Huggett: Violin
Sarah Cunningham: Viola de Gamba
Gary Cooper: Harpsichord (on pieces 1, 5)
Mitzi Meyerson: Harpsichord (pieces 2,3,4,6)

2 cds, 17 pieces

I was afraid the harpsichord would get in the way of the strings, but no it doesn't. And the flute is wonderful.

Don't trust the TWV numbers in the "On this CD" section.

I compared titles of the movements of each piece with those listed in the TWV catalog web page at

I think the correct TWV numbers are, in order:

TWV 43:D 3 (not D 2)
TWV 43:a 2
TWV 43:G 4
TWV 43:h 2 (not g1)
TWV 43:A 3 (not e1)
TWV 43:e 4

This is NOW the album that is running thru my mind. I love it, such a unique blending of instruments. It sometimes has the feel of new age music, (of course, it was) very haunting and ethereal. Quatuor #2 in A Minor VI coulant....wow, I play this over and over. I now love Teleman and am looking for more. If you like something different try this!

This is a very good pair of CDs, probably very faithful to the intent of the composer, and extremely well played except... The quartet goes into a bit of a funk during Quartet Four and most of Five. For example, Movement 1 of quartet 5 is titled "Vivement": "Lively". It is played, however, barely faster than the "Modere" movements, and without any more life.

By the time they get to the second "Modere" movement of Quartet 5, and especially the "Pas Vite" (movement 5) though, they're back in gear. I think that these two Quartets must have been played at the end of a long day, or a long week. Or maybe it's just that any team has a hard time being completely "on" 100% of the time.


But that barely distracts from an otherwise superbly played CD, with the purest flute/recorder sound I've heard in a long time, played with wonderful feeling except for the cuts I mentioned. The last two movements of the Sixth Quartet are some of the most beautiful and inspiring pieces I've heard in a while. And this CD is a tremendous bargain to boot!

These quarters are the version that Telemann published in 1738 in Paris, played with modern sparkle on traditional instruments. While they are quartets in the sense that there are four instruments, the harpsicord is just a baso continuo, and the structure and the character of the works are nothing like the classical quartets that were soon to be developed. Rather, they are more in the nature of dance suites with the flute usually particularly prominent while the contrapuntal writing is nothing like as complex as that found in Bach's suites. However, taken on their own terms, these are very pleasing works, truly easy listening if not very demanding. The artists, especially Wilbert Hazelzet on flute and Monica Huggett on violin are splendid, and listening to them is pure joy.

Listening to all six quartets non-stop can get a bit tedious, unless they are being used as background music (for which they are very suitable) but that is easily fixed by only listening to a few at a time. The accompanying notes in English, German and French are not particularly informative, and have the oddity that the French notes are not the same as the English and German ones. The French ones contain the nugget of trivia that one of the subscribers to the edition of the quartets on which these performances are based was J.S. Bach.

Overall, this is a spendid set -- and very good value.

We purchased this CD a little while back. The enjoyment is has afforded us since then has made it a constant companion. It is always handy, and often playing in the evenings.