Farnaby Prelude on Lautenclavier

On February 4, 2005 I played a duo-recital with Gottfried von der Goltz, leader of the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra and Professor of Violin and Baroque Violin at the Musikhochschule Freiburg, on the theme "Fantasia". I included a set of Giles Farnaby pieces performed on a lautenclavier (a harpsichord with gut strings) by Keith Hill (1993).

Here a short Prelude in C Major:

On the Sunny Side of the Street

Not strictly a live performance -- I took advantage of a short break during a studio recording in 2006 to try a solo piano version (on a 1930s Bechstein) of this classic.

J. S. Bach: Italian Concerto BWV 971: Andante

From my harpsichord recital in the Anna-Kirche during the Aachener Bachtage in Aachen in November 2005, the Andante.
Harpsichord by Keith Hill, 1997, after P. Taskin, 1769

Jean Louis Adam: A Tribute

Today is the 249th anniversary of the birth of Jean Louis Adam, an important figure in the establishment of the piano in the conservatory curriculum. Eclipsed in fame by his son, the composer Adolphe Adam, J. L. Adam (1758-1848) was highly respected in his own time, not the least for his Méthode de Piano du Conservatoire (Paris, 1805).


Here, in a concert from 2005, his Romance from the Méthode. I played my Cristofori-model fortepiano (K. Hill, 1999) for this performance, using the "una corda" stop, a sliding keyboard mechanism normally only used for tuning purposes, but which creates a distinctive, not to say magical, timbre.

J. S. Bach: 6-part Ricercar from the "Musical Offering" BWV 1079

On Oct. 25 and 26, 2007, the Symphony Orchestra of the Freiburg Musikhochschule, under the direction of Prof. Scott Sandmeier presented a program of transcriptions of works by J. S. Bach. Prof. Sandmeier and I jointly developed a program concept that in part juxtaposed Bach's original version of a work with its transcribed version. So, for example, the 6-part Ricercar from the "Musical Offering" first on solo harpsichord, then in the transcription for orchestra by Anton Webern. Here the harpsichord version of the Ricercar à 6 from the Oct. 26 performance.

Instrument after P. Taskin (Paris, 1769) by Keith Hill (1998)

Improvisation on the Bass of the Goldberg Variations

This recording is now 15 years old, and ought to be in the archives, but the file happened to be available while I was experimenting to get this blog online. I performed this improvisation in May 1993 as part of my inaugural recital for my position as Professor of Historical Keyboards at the Musikhochschule Freiburg. The improvisation, together with the complete 1993 live performance of J. S. Bach's Goldberg Variations BWV 988 is available from Music & Arts records.
Harpsichord: Keith Hill 1993 after Pascal Taskin (Paris, 1769)