This Chaconne in G minor for violin and continuo is traditionally attributed to the Italian composer Tomaso Antonio Vitali (1663 –1745). A Dresden manuscript that may have been transcribed in the early 18th century is the earliest known version, but it was not published until 1867 when German violinist-composer Ferdinand David (1810–1873) arranged it for violin and piano, embellishing the violin part with additional challenges requiring virtuoso techniques. It was also David who gave the composition the title “Chaconne”. This, along with its stylistic dissimilarities with Vitali’s other music, caused musicologists to doubt the origin of the work.
The Chaconne features a continuo part, played on the organ in this performance. Above it, the violin soloist tackles increasingly complex variations on the theme. There are several abrupt changes in the key between variations, atypical of other chaconnes from the Baroque era.
At his American debut recital at Carnegie Hall in 1917, Jascha Heifetz played this Chaconne and subsequently performed it as part of his regular concert repertoire.
Chloe Chua, violin
Isaac Lee, organ
Sherilyn Lim, registrant
About the organist:
Singaporean organist Isaac Lee is a C.V. Starr Doctoral Fellow at The Juilliard School. He recently graduated from Yale University with a Master of Musical Arts degree. While at Yale, he received the 2002 Robert Baker Prize for performance excellence and the 2023 Director’s Prize for research excellence. He is one of the 2024 winners of the American Guild of Organists Commissioning project where he will work with Singaporean composer Cheng Jin Koh to premiere a new piece. He served as the Wilson Family Sacred Music Intern at The Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City for two years and was organist for Marquand Chapel at Yale University.
He earned his Bachelor of Music degree with high distinction from the Eastman School of Music studying with Hans Davidsson. Thereafter, he obtained multiple graduate degrees from the Royal Danish Academy of Music under the tutelage of Bine Bryndorf and Hans Davidsson. Whilst in Denmark, he completed a successful fellowship at Roskilde Cathedral, a UNESCO heritage site that boasts the 1555 Raphaelis organ.
Recorded live at the Victoria Concert Hall, Singapore, on 6 Jan 2024.
Cover photo: Clive Choo
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