October 1, 2021 (Halifax) Award-winning artist and early-music musician Hank Knox is pleased to present Scarlatti: Essercizi Per Gravicembalo, released through Halifax-based record label Leaf Music. Like so many musicians, Knox found himself with a lot of time on his hands during the pandemic. He spent the past 10 months completely immersed in Domenico Scarlatti’s only authorized publication, a collection of thirty sonatas first published in 1739 in London, England. Knox’s recording of the Essercizi Per Gravicembalo offers the listener a deep dive into Scarlatti’s richly inventive and imaginative musical world. Essercizi Per Gravicembalo, meaning “Exercises for Harpsichord,” is a virtuosic collection that has been in uninterrupted print since its publication 275 years ago. The collection was dedicated to King John V of Portugal, father of Scarlatti’s longtime pupil and patron, Queen Maria Barbara of Spain. Essercizi Per Gravicembalo was recorded by Hank Knox in April 2021 at Église St. Augustin, Mirabel, QC.
“Hank Knox reveals virtuosity, imagination and a keen sense of rhythm.”
— Musica Sett (Italy)
Hailed internationally for his “colorful, kinetic performances,” Hank Knox performs on harpsichord in concert halls, churches, museums, galleries and homes around the globe. A founding member of Montreal’s Arion Baroque Orchestra, with whom he has toured North and South America, Europe, and Japan, Knox also regularly performs and tours with Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Les Violons du Roy and l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, among other groups, ensembles and orchestras.
He has released a number of acclaimed recordings on rare antique instruments as well as copies of historical instruments. He teaches in the Early Music program at McGill University where he conducts the McGill Baroque Orchestra. He has directed a great number of Baroque operas for Opera McGill, including Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Monteverdi’s Poppea and Handel’s Agrippina, Giulio Cesare, Alcina and Rinaldo.
Hank Knox collaborates regularly with Canadian violinist, Mark Fewer. Their complete recording of the J.S Bach: Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord, BWV 1014-1019 was released on Leaf Music in 2017. The Vivaldi: Manchester Sonatas were arranged and recorded by Fewer and Knox and were released on Leaf Music in 2020. This is the first recording of the works by Canadian artists.
Hank Knox | Scarlatti: Essercizi Per Gravicembalo
Release date: Oct 1, 2021
Physical/Digital Release
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