Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 1. Sonata. Grave - A
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 2. Allamanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 3. Courante
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 4. Sarabanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 5. Gavotte
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 6. Gigue
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 1 in D major. 7. Sonatina. Allegro
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 1. Intrada. Alla bre
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 2. Balletto. Alla br
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 3. Sarabanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 4. Balletto. Alla br
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 5. Sarabande
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 2 in F major. 6. Balletto. Alla br
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 3 in A minor. 1. Gagliarda. Allegr
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 3 in A minor. 2. Sarabanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 3 in A minor. 3. Aria
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 3 in A minor. 4. Ciacona
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 3 in A minor. 5. Sonatina. Adagio
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 1. Sonata. Grav
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 2. Allamanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 3. Courante
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 4. Balletto
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 5. Sarabanda
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 6. Gigue. Prest
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 4 in B flat major. 7. Sonatina. Ad
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 1. Intrada. Allegro
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 2. Balletto
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 3. Trezza
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 4. Gigue
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 5. Gavotte. Alla bre
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 6. Gigue
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 5 in E major. 7. Retirada
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 1. Sonata. Adagio -
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 2. Aria
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 3. Canario. Presto
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 4. Amener
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 5. Trezza
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 6. Ciacona
Mensa Sonora seu Musica Instrumentalis, suites (6) for violin, 2 violas & continuo, C. 69-74: Pars 6 in G minor. 7. Sonatina. Adagio
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 1. Sonata. Allegro
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 2. Die liederliche Gesellschaft von allerley
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 3. Presto
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 4. Der Mars
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 5. Presto
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 6. Aria
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 7. Die Schlacht
Battalia, for 3 violins, 4 violas, 2 violini & keyboard in D major, C. 61 (B. XIV 122): 8. Lamento der Verwundten Musquetirer
Chicago's 'stylish and exciting period-instrument group' (Chicago Tribune), Baroque Band presents works by the Bohemian-Austrian composer Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, 'the most important Baroque composer before Bach' ac... more »cording to Paul Hindemith, and unquestionably one of the most innovative and influential composers of the second half of the seventeenth century.
Biber's Mensa Sonora (meaning 'Harmonious Table') was music composed for aristocratic dining, though it is anything but superficial background music. The disc closes with the 10-part Battalia for strings, which uses several unique devices for the time: hitting the strings with the wood of the bow, placing paper on the strings of the basses to imitate a snare drum, snap pizzicatos (à la Bartók!), and folk songs rendered simultaneously in eight different keys to portray drunken soldiers.« less
Chicago's 'stylish and exciting period-instrument group' (Chicago Tribune), Baroque Band presents works by the Bohemian-Austrian composer Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, 'the most important Baroque composer before Bach' according to Paul Hindemith, and unquestionably one of the most innovative and influential composers of the second half of the seventeenth century.
Biber's Mensa Sonora (meaning 'Harmonious Table') was music composed for aristocratic dining, though it is anything but superficial background music. The disc closes with the 10-part Battalia for strings, which uses several unique devices for the time: hitting the strings with the wood of the bow, placing paper on the strings of the basses to imitate a snare drum, snap pizzicatos (à la Bartók!), and folk songs rendered simultaneously in eight different keys to portray drunken soldiers.
"If you think of Heinrich Ignaz Franz Von Biber (love that name) mostly as a composer of large-scaled polychoral works and gnarly music for solo violin, his Mensa Sonora is going to surprise you. Mensa Sonora, or "sounding table," is a set of instrumental suites or "Pars" for dining - think of the French Symphonies pour les soupers du Roy or Telemann's Tafelmusik and you will get the picture.
While the music is not as challenging as some of Biber's other instrumental suites - Harmonia artificiosa or Sonatae tam aris quam aulis servientes come to mind - there is plenty of melodic and rhythmic invention that raises the music to something more than Baroque Muzak. The CD is rounded out by Biber's programmatic Battalia, a work filled with such special effects as knocking on the violin in some passages and playing 8 folk songs all in different keys at the same time! It's boozy fun.
The performances are excellent. The Chicago-based Baroque Band eschews the typical one-on-a-part style with a larger ensemble and it serves the larger-scaled passages well. While I prefer the raucous Concentus Musicus Wien performance of Battalia, it's really a treat to hear such a full-bodied performance of the Mensa Sonora.
Track Listings (47) - Disc #1
