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Anonymous, 15th century, a gentle and haunting two-voiced keyboard piece in triple time. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A dance by Peter Philips appearing in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. Although it is quite short, its cross-rhythms are especially elaborate. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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An example of the mid-15th century organ style of Conrad Paumann (c1410-1473). Mit ganczem Willen appears to be an elaboration of a three-part vocal model which eventually mutates into a two-part keyboard texture. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A rhythmically complex piece in the mid-15th century organ style of Conrad Paumann (c1410-1473) |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Anonymous, 16th century, some rough-and-ready Halloween party music |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Tangent, 1200-1599 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A pair of pieces from J S Bach's notebook for his wife Anna Magdalena, and familiar to keyboard and violin students. Prime teaching material for Bach's lessons with his wife and kids! |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Attributed as an early composition of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, appearing in his stepmother Anna Magdalena's notebook...first of three polonaises I have recorded. |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Attributed as an early composition of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, appearing in his stepmother Anna Magdalena's notebook. Second of a set of three I have recorded. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Attributed as an early composition of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, appearing in his stepmother Anna Magdalena's notebook...perhaps this was a composition assignment in a lesson with his father.... |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A lute dance by Melchior Neusidler, 1574: music in a popular style, with a duple dance followed by a triple dance on the same themes. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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From the 1531 collection of dance music published by Pierre Attaingnant: the earliest surviving publication of keyboard music. This basse dance also exists in versions for ensemble ("Bergeret sans roch," published by Susato) and for lute ("La roche" and "La roque," in another Attaingnant book). |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A danceable pavan in C minor, credited to "Newman" in The Mulliner Book. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A short and simple imitative piece by Thomas Tallis, from The Mulliner Book. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This gentle tune by Orlando Gibbons is #13 of sixteen Gibbons tunes in George Wither's collection "Hymnes and Songs of the Church," 1623. The text in Withers' book is from the Song of Solomon: "Oh, my love! how comely now, and how beautiful art thou!..." My arrangement is for an imaginary ensemble of viols, growing from Gibbons' original version which included soprano and bass only. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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The 16th century version as it appears in hymnals is presented first; then a sparkling three-part arrangement by Pachelbel, with the chorale tune played slowly in the top voice. It is natural that this core of practical organ repertoire was regularly played at home on clavichords, rather than hiring a bellows pumper for practice at the church. The clavichord also presents the texture with exceptional clarity. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This is the "Passion Chorale" tune for "O Sacred Head, now wounded", used by Bach, Hans Leo Hassler, Paul Simon, and many others.... The set of variations here is composite and moves backward in time: a four-part vocal version from J. S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, an organ prelude by Johann Pachelbel, and an organ harmonization from Samuel Scheidt’s Görlitzer Tabulaturbuch (1650). |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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From the 16th century onward there are over 200 surviving European versions of this particular song, "La Monica," most often about a young woman forced to become a nun against her will. The version played here is one of the most straightforward early settings, the "Almande de la nonette" from Susanne van Soldt’s virginal book. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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From the Seis libros del Delphin by Luys de Narvaez, 1538, originally for vihuela da mano. Guardame las vacas is a set of variations on a popular song about two young cowherds. |
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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An imitative piece by Luys Milan, mid-16th century, originally for vihuela da mano. It illustrates particularly well the clavichord's different sounds from octave to octave. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This popular piece by Alonso Mudarra is a staple of classical guitarists' repertoire, originally for vihuela but imitating the free harp improvisations of Ludovico (early 16th century). The daring harmonic clashes near the end are accompanied by a margin note from the composer: he cautions the player to play them tastefully rather than worrying about the "wrong" notes. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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An imitative fantasia by Luys Milan, mid-16th century, originally for vihuela da mano (a forerunner of the guitar). |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Mille regretz (Cancion del emperador) is a setting by Luys Narvaez (1538) of Josquin's wistful chanson: restrained elaborations that stay within the sorrowful character of the vocal model. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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The dramatic set of seven variations by Georg Böhm (1661-1733) is typical of this passionate North German composer. His dynamic keyboard textures and techniques are particularly well suited to the clavichord, although his music is also effective on the harpsichord or organ. |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A selection of variations on this melancholy chorale: versions 1, 2, 6, and 7 from a set of ten by Johann Gottfried Walther (1684-1748). Like the chorale partitas of his cousin J S Bach, Walther's variation sets are practical collections of options for the organist, and most of the variations without pedals work fine on any keyboard instrument. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This Irish folk tune is found in the 1915 collection "O'Neill's Irish Music", arranged for keyboard by Selena O'Neill. I found this wonderful old book in a small bookstore in Limerick. I play the O'Neill version followed by my own elaboration. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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The melancholy Catalan folk song (the "Cant dels ocells") with which Pablo Casals frequently closed his cello recitals. I have given it a simple improvisatory setting. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This traditional round is a plea for peace, mesmerizing in its repetitions. The arrangement is inspired partly by the ringing sound of hammered dulcimers. After all three voices have gone through the round, an upside-down version of the theme gradually replaces it. The original theme is present only in the imagination until it returns near the end. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This Japanese folk tune is usually found with a text about cherry blossoms. My arrangement is inspired by the sound of a koto ensemble. The tune is played simply by a single voice, then as a two-voiced canon. Then a more complex canon follows: three voices at two speeds and in two keys. This typically 15th-century compositional treatment brings exotic musical clashes. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Stately dance music by Melchior Vulpius in the style of a galliard, minimally arranged for keyboard. |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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I have brought these two dance-like tunes together as a Viennese minuet and trio in the style of Haydn or Mozart. |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A short example from Tomas de Sancta Maria's treatise on improvising contrapuntal keyboard fantasias. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Tangent, 1200-1599 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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I play this gently rocking 17th century chorale tune in my simple setting in two, three, and four parts, written in the style of academic counterpoint exercises. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A traditional Irish folk tune found in the 1915 collection "O'Neill's Irish Music," arranged for keyboard by Selena O'Neill. I play the O'Neill version followed by my own elaboration. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet published (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This popular martyrs’ hymn of the 16th century became a staple German chorale for at least the next 200 years, with the tune rearranged in every generation. Pachelbel set it as a chromatic fugue. It is natural that this core of practical organ repertoire was regularly played at home on clavichords, rather than hiring a bellows pumper for practice at the church. The clavichord also presents the texture with exceptional clarity. |
MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Martin Luther found this tune being sung lustily in a pub, and adapted it for his own use in church. My increasingly greasy arrangement heard here is an attempt to catch some of the original pub atmosphere and good fun in the rhythm. Part of it is also inspired by William Byrd's battle piece from My Ladye Nevells Booke. |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet published (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A short imitative piece in progressively quicker note values. Adriano Banchieri is better known for his ensemble music than his keyboard music. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Tangent, 1200-1599 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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I play this 12th century plainchant tune first in parallel as organum, then a new two-part setting in improvisatory 14th century keyboard style, followed by a triple-time version from the Buxheim organ book (c1470). |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Tangent, 1200-1599 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet published (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This is based on a choral responsory by Tomas Luis de Victoria (1548-1611). I have arranged it as a keyboard piece after the intabulation styles of Cabezon and his followers. This elaboration of vocal models was a common practice either for use with choirs, or for enjoyment at home. The added decorations intensify the expressivity of the phrases and help to prolong notes which fade quickly on non-sustaining instruments. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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An extremely popular 17th century song by Giulio Caccini, establishing a new style of singing and rearranged by composers everywhere soon after its publication. This version by Peter Philips is in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. This is the jazz of the early 17th century. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Claude Debussy's 1909 imitation of American popular music (cakewalks and Scott Joplin)...played on clavichord! |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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The tune is by Johann Horn, 1544. This short setting celebrates the bright joyousness of the text. The tune passes through ever-changing textures and colors; there are a few whimsical 20th-century touches.... |
MP3.com CD: Dances with Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: Hymn Vignettes & Variations - buy it!
CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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A theme from Edward Elgar’s cello concerto winds through this French carol in telling the story of the Annunciation. In this carol it is possible that there has been a copying error somewhere many years ago, especially with the old French style of notating repeats and alternate endings. By both the text progression and the music it seems that the "most highly favored lady" refrain should occur only when Gabriel is speaking, and "gloria!" only when Mary is responding at the end. Accordingly, I play it with those phantom repeat and second-ending marks restored. It works well sung that way, too. |
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CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This poignant and melancholy funeral piece commemorating Gaultier's wife is in the rare key of F-sharp minor. It was originally for lute. Gaultier himself lived from c1600-1672. |
MP3.com CD: The Serene Clavichord - buy it! MP3.com CD: On a Cotangent, 1600-1999 - buy it!
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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One of the classic bass formulas for improvising dance music. This is an anonymous 16th century example played on clavichord. |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Clavichord arrangement based on the way Bill Evans played Michel Legrand's tune. |
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This dance is the earliest extant keyboard composition (of ANY kind!), and is found in the Robertsbridge Codex. The repeated sections become mesmerizing after a while.... |
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CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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The text of this hymn celebrates stories about Jesus’ healing of those who asked for his attention. It also calls for help for ourselves, sometimes politely, sometimes more insistently. |
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CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This is a setting by Johann Gottfried Walther (1684-1748), who was a cousin, colleague, and good friend of J. S. Bach.Walther’s first variation from a set of 13 is followed by the 1628 version of the chorale tune as it appears in a modern hymnal. |
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CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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This stark piece from 1991 was an angry, frustrated reaction both to a winter storm and to a report of the U.S. bombing innocent civilians in "Operation Desert Storm." That morning I found Brian Wren’s powerful text awaiting attention for a hymnal project, mixed it with my feelings about the day so far, and quickly worked out the musical setting at the clavichord: the gentlest of instruments shrieking at the violent music that was being played on it. |
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CD: Hymnal Vignettes for Clavichord
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Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Experimental Dada composition. The feeling one gets after eating a frosted toaster pastry. The "...and Fugue" follows, none too steadily. |
Label: (not for publication)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Follows the "Frosted Toaster Pastry." A Bach fugue, crumpled and played queasily, exploring the limits of bad taste. I wrote the "Frosted Toaster Pastry and Fugue" in 1992 for a harpsichord concert; the audience was remarkably charitable about it! (The rest of the program was more conventional....) |
Label: (not for publication)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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Inspired by Bugs Bunny's ukulele: this is the song he used to torment his neighbor, tenor Giovanni Jones, in "Long-Haired Hare." |
CD: The Domesticated Clavichord
Label: not yet released (seeking publisher)
Credits: Dr Bradley Lehman, clavichord |
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