Directory
Harpsichord
The British harpsichordist DAVITT MORONEY is one of the most
thoughtful and thought-provoking players on the musical scene today.
His concert career has taken him all over Europe, as well as the USA,
Australia and Japan. Like many other players of his generation, he
has been profoundly influenced by teachers such as Gustav Leonhardt.
He firmly believes that original instruments of the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, well restored, can reveal in unsuspected ways
the expressive discourse of music of those centuries. He also works
actively with modern harpsichord and organ builders who work within
the old traditions, and he enjoys collaborating with modern composers
who write idiomatically for the harpsichord. He is now based in
California, where he is Professor of Music at the University of
California, Berkeley; he is also University Organist.
His fascination with the music of J S Bach led him first to the organ, and then to the harpsichord. Bach remains the centre of his musical universe, both on the concert stage and in the recording studio. He has also devoted much attention to the French harpsichord school, notably Louis and François Couperin, but he is also particularly known for his performances of the music of the English School, from Byrd to Purcell. One of the striking features of his concerts is his habit of speaking to the audience about the works he plays - providing illuminating and immediate insights into the music to be heard.
He has made nearly fifty CDs, primarily for solo harpsichord or organ
(most are on the Harmonia Mundi, Virgin and Hyperion labels). They
have received various international prizes, notably three British
Gramophone Awards (1986, 1991, 2000), a French Grand Prix du Disque
de l'Académie Charles Cros (1996) and a German Preis der Deutschen
Schallplattenkritik (2000). A significant recent project was the
Complete Keyboard Works of the Elizabethan composer William Byrd (127
pieces on 7 CDs, using six instruments, for Hyperion).
He has also written numerous scholarly articles and published nearly two dozen critical editions of Baroque music (including Bach's The Art of Fugue, which includes his own completion of the unfinished final fugue). His book "Bach, An Extraordinary Life" (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, 2000) has been translated into six languages.
Contact details and further information
E-mail Davitt Moroney