Fantasia - Telemann 12 Fantasias for viola da gamba (Transcription for Guitar)

Cobra Records often brings our listeners some interesting takes on well-known music.  In 2018 Cobra released Mahler’s 5th Symphony performed – not by a full orchestra but by a small ensemble with the album Mahler V by the Natalia Ensemble.

Today we have another album in this style with the release of Telemann’s 12 Fantasies for Viola da Gamba.  In this case, the album is performed by guitarist Sandro Rodrigues with a transcription of the work that he wrote. Cobra Records and NativeDSD are excited about this new release so we are bringing it to you now – one month ahead of its official release in April.

Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767) was regarded by his contemporaries as one of the best composers of his time.  Today we know that he was also among the most prolific composers of all with more than 3,000 works of different styles, many of which have never been known or the manuscripts were lost during the Second World War.

His works were published both in Paris and in Germany and acquired and distributed by musicians from all over Europe.  This gave Telemann more popularity than Johann Sebastian Bach.  Yet he was soon ignored and belittled until interest in his music gradually resurfaced in the 20th Century, thus slowly regaining the place that recognizes him as one of the great composers of his time.

In this gradual process of recovering Telemann’s music, it has taken place sporadically and re-highlight the work of the Magdeburg composer. This is the case of the Fantasies pour la Basse de Violle, a collection of twelve fantasies for viola da gamba transcribed for guitar on this album.