Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767)
12 Fantasias
arranged after the fantasias for viola da gamba solofor alto recorder solo
Arranged by Monika MandelartzGirolamo G 12.049, playing score, € 24,00
ISMN 979-0-50084-077-0
Preface
On hearing of the newly discovered Twelve Fantasias for Solo Viol by Georg Philipp Telemann, I was excited, as must have been many other musicians, and eager to discover how many more works Telemann still has in store for us, knowing that Telemann was a prolific composer, who was well versed in a variety of different styles.
www.imslp.org contains a PDF file of an original print dating from ca. 1735, which I used as a starting point.
These "new" fantasias convey an entirely new "musical feel" for the player – no way can you understand them on first playing them through. As some other reviewers1 I was initially baffled by some rather unusual passages, but my original scepticism soon turned into enthusiasm at the discovery of twelve complex, musically rich pieces, albeit not immediately understandable to the performer. Telemann's fantasias for viol are so full of inspiration that even now, after having completed the transcription, I still discover features that had previously gone unnoticed. I thought I knew Telemann – I now have to admit that my knowledge was incomplete.
This is an experience I would like to share with other recorder players by publishing this transcription for recorder.
To begin with, I transposed all fantasias up by one eleventh, so as to reach the pitch of the treble recorder. The tonal range of the viol is significantly larger than that of the recorder; in addition the viol offers the capability to play double stops and hence music composed in fugato style. When arranging this music for the recorder, certain adaptations are therefore required, whereby my topmost priority has been to find solutions which made sense musically. In some cases I therefore decided in favour of a major change to the original rather than a note-for-note transcription, so as to meet the specific requirements and capabilities of the recorder without restricting the player.
Bearing this in mind, my transcriptions should be regarded as the highly personal suggestion of a 21st century musician for a transcription for recorder. Every player is invited to study the sources and find his or her own version.
For in-depth study I suggest consulting the excellent new edition by Thomas Fritzsch and Günter von Zadow, which includes a clean facsimile of the source.2
I wish all players an inspired voyage of discovery when studying and playing these "new" fantasias by Georg Philipp Telemann.
Translation: Christa Lange-Rudd
Hamburg, October 2016, Monika Mandelartz
1) Hans-Georg Kramer: Zwölf Fantasien für Viola da Gamba solo, (Twelve Fantasias for Viola da Gamba solo), in: Concerto, das Magazin für alte Musik (Magazine for Early Music), No. 268 (July/August 2016), pp. 22–24
2) Edition Güntersberg, Heidelberg 2016, Edition No. G281
