Classical Music Lavinia Meijer Unfolding Lines

Lavinia Meijer Unfolding Lines

Bach: Prelude in C Major, BWV 846; Fugue in C Major, BWV 846; Prelude in C-Sharp Major, BWV 848; Fugue in C-Sharp Major, BWV 848; Prelude in F Minor, BWV 881; Fugue in F Minor, BWV 881; Prelude in F-Sharp Major, BWV 858; Fugue in F-Sharp Major, BWV 858; Prelude in E Major, BWV 878; Fugue in E Major, BWV 878; Scarlatti: Sonata in F Major, K 446; Sonata in E Major, K 380; Sonata in A Major, K 208; Sonata in A Major, K 209; Sonata in A Major, K 113; Sonata in D Minor, K 213; Sonata in F Major, K 276; Sonata in F Minor, K 466; Sonata in F Major, K 44; Händel: Tema con Variazioni.

Sony Classical

Three composers born in a single year — 1685 — represent one of history's most improbable confluences of genius. Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, and Domenico Scarlatti shared their birth year yet took keyboard music in wildly different directions. Lavinia Meijer's Unfolding Lines celebrates this extraordinary trifecta, bringing these Baroque masters together in a programme of preludes, fugues, sonatas, and variations – performed, remarkably, on solo harp.

The album is a remastered edition of a self-released album from over two decades ago, long out of print and now restored to circulation. Meijer has taken the opportunity to recreate the program and redesign the artwork, presenting what amounts to a fresh discovery for most listeners.

The immediate question — does this music work on the harp? — is answered emphatically within moments. The clarity and articulation are immaculate, the music unfolding with a naturalness that makes the transcription feel inevitable rather than imposed. Bach's preludes and fugues discover an unexpected poetry through the resonance and shimmer of the harp's strings; Handel's Tema con Variazioni glows with warmth, and Scarlatti's Sonata in A major is simply delightful — sparkling, mercurial, and perfectly suited to Meijer's touch.

What distinguishes this recording is its curation as much as its performance. Meijer possesses a rare gift for programming, and the musicianship throughout is exquisite: virtuosic yet never showy, always in service of the music. The result is an album of unusual absorbing quality — calming in the best possible sense and, in a world of noise and unrest, a reminder that beauty endures.