Handel: 6 Concerti grossi, Op. 3 Van Diemen's Band & Martin Gester

• George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313:
• 1 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: I. Vivace 01:52
• 2 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: II. Largo 02:44
• 3 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: III. Allegro 02:22
• 4 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: IV. Tempo di minuetto 01:37
• 5 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 2, HWV 313: V. Gavotte 03:17
• Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314:
• 6 Handel: Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: Ia. Largo e staccato 00:37
• 7 Handel: Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: Ib. Allegro 02:46
• 8 Handel: Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: II. Adagio 01:00
• 9 Handel: Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 3 No. 3, HWV 314: IV. Allegro 03:50
• Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316:
• 10 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: I. Grave 01:33
• 11 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: II. Allegro 02:21
• 12 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: III. Adagio 01:32
• 13 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: IV. Allegro ma non troppo 01:41
• 14 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 5, HWV 316: V. Allegro 02:47
• Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317:
• 15 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: Ia. Vivace 02:43
• 16 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: Ib. Adagio 03:49
• 17 Handel: Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 3 No. 6, HWV 317: II. Allegro 03:53
• Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra":
• 18 Handel: Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": I. Andante 06:19
• 19 Handel: Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": II. Andante 01:49
• 20 Handel: Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": III. Allegro 01:35
• 21 Handel: Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4a, HWV 315 "Orchestra": IV. Minuetto alternativo 02:33
• Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312:
• 22 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: I. Allegro 02:43
• 23 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: II. Largo 04:07
• 24 Handel: Concerto grosso in B-Flat Major, Op. 3 No. 1, HWV 312: III. Allegro 01:29
• Total Runtime 01:00:59

Info for Handel: 6 Concerti grossi, Op. 3

What we know as ‘Handel’s Opus 3’ is most likely little more than a brazen attempt by the London publisher John Walsh to make some quick money. In 1715, Walsh had issued a pirated edition of Corelli’s 12 Concerti Grossi Opus6 which proved an instant success, and left him constantly looking for similar opportunities. Almost 20 years later, perhaps in the knowledge that the royal protection granted to Handel’s musical out put was about to expire, Walsh assembled a set of six orchestral pieces for a wide range of instruments. He prefaced them with a wholly misleading title-page–based on Corelli’s style-defining collection–and advertised themas Handel’s ‘Opera Terza’.

It is likely that Handel never took part in the selection and organisation of the individual movements, although he may have been involved in the revisions made when are print was necessary a few years later. Selected from various sources, the six concertos certainly don’t form an organic cycle – in complete contrast to the future Op.6 concerti grossi, which Handel carefully conceived as a set. The fact remains that Opus3 contains some of Handel’s best-loved music, in instrumental combinations that are colourful and often unexpected–aspects that Martin Gester and his musicians in the Tasmanian period band Van Diemen’s Band make the most of.

Van Diemen’s Band:
Julia Fredersdorff, violin I, principal
Lucinda Moon, violin II, artistic director
Brendan Joyce, violin I principal ripieno
Simone Slattery, violin I / double recorder
Emily Sheppard, violin II
Susie Furphy, violin II
Jenny Owen, violin I
Deirdre Dowling, viola principal
Nicole Forsyth, viola
Catherine Jones, cello principal
Natasha Kraemer, cello
Kirsty McCahon, double bass
Simon Martyn-Ellis, theorbo
Aline Zylberajch, harpsichord
Jasu Moisio, oboe I
Ingo Mueller, oboe II
Georgia Browne, traverso, double recorder
Simone Walters, bassoon I
Brock Imison, bassoon II

Van Diemen's Band
Based in the wild and unspoiled island state of Tasmania at the southernmost tip of Australia, ‘Australia’s Baroque supergroup’ Van Diemen’s Band is made up of some of the country’s most highly respected early music specialists, who between them have worked with leading ensembles such as Les Arts Florissants, Les Talens Lyriques, Ensemble Pygmalion, Il Pomo d’Oro, Orchestre des Champs-Elysées, The English Concert, Academy of Ancient Music, Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, Le Parlement de Musique, and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra.

Founded in 2016 by violinist Julia Fredersdorff, VDB varies in size from an intimate chamber group to a larger mid-eighteenth-century orchestra working with regular guest directors such as French Baroque specialist Martin Gester, exploring the creativity and freedom of expression in music of the baroque while deferring to historical sources on style and instrumentation.

Van Diemen’s Band’s debut CD Cello Napoletano, featuring soloist Catherine Jones in the cello concertos of Nicola Fiorenza was released internationally in 2018 to critical acclaim. Since then, the group has appeared in concerts and festivals in its home state and around mainland Australia, establishing itself as one of the most distinguished new groups in the arts scene ‘Down Under’.

A CD recording of Bach Bass Cantatas with David Greco will be appearing on the ABC Classic label towards the end of 2020 and the group’s debut recording of the Concerti Grossi Opus 3 by Handel for the Swedish label BIS will be released in June 2021.

Julia Fredersdorff
Melbourne-born violinist Julia Fredersdorff studied baroque violin with Lucinda Moon at the Victorian College of the Arts, before travelling to The Netherlands to study with Enrico Gatti at The Royal Conservatorium in The Hague. Based in Paris for almost ten years, Julia freelanced with some of the finest European ensembles, such as Les Talens Lyriques, Les Folies Françoises, Le Concert d’Astrée, Le Parlement de Musique, Ensemble Matheus, Les Paladins, Il Complesso Barocco, New Dutch Academy, Ensemble Aurora and Bach Concentus.

Now resident again in Australia, Julia performs regularly as concertmaster for the Orchestra of the Antipodes and is the Artistic Director of the Tasmanian baroque ensemble, Van Diemen’s Band. She is a founding member of period string quartet Ironwood, and the twice ARIA-nominated baroque trio, Latitude 37 and a core-member of Ludovico’s Band.

Julia has participated in CD recordings for Virgin Classics, Deutsche Grammaphon, Accent, Accord, Naïve, Erato, Passacaille, Ambronay, ABC Classics, Vexations840 and Tall Poppies. She teaches baroque violin at the Conservatorium’s of Sydney, Hobart and Melbourne.

Booklet for Handel: 6 Concerti grossi, Op. 3