Scarlatti, D.: Sonatas for Harpsichord

Since the very dawn of the compact disc era, Ralph Kirkpatrick's seminal recordings of Domenico Scarlatti have mainly been conspicuous only by their absence from the active catalog. It's hard be sure just why, as all along listeners and reviewers alike have been requesting their return. Kirkpatrick's Bach has been reissued here and there, along with some oddities, including a live, all twentieth century recital Kirkpatrick performed in 1961, released on Music and Arts. But of the Scarlatti, nothing -- how could the man who put the "K." in Scarlatti go neglected; were not his performances once considered the acme in Scarlatti played on the harpsichord?
Thankfully now the wait is over, as Deutsche Grammophon's Archiv Produktion is finally making its Kirkpatrick holdings available as part of the "Blue" series in an album entitled Domenico Scarlatti: 21 Sonatas for Harpsichord. This includes the entire contents of the classic 1971 stereo album issued as Archiv 2553 072 and three 1966 recordings made for the little-known Deutsche Grammophon recital disc Ralph Kirkpatrick, Cembalo (DG 139 122). As by now an entire generation of music lovers have been raised without the benefit of Kirkpatrick's Scarlatti to listen to, one might wonder -- how well does it hold up? How does it sound, now that listeners have heard Scarlatti players such as Pierre Hantaï, Scott Ross, Eiji Hashimoto, or Mayako Sone?
Excellently well, thank you -- from the first it is apparent that Kirkpatrick's approach to Scarlatti was even more flexible in tempo and approach than recalled. And yet at the same time, Kirkpatrick's interpretations still retain their authoritative and definitive qualities -- while certain things have changed about Scarlatti interpretation since Kirkpatrick made these recordings 35 years ago, not so much has refashioned that these recordings sound "old fashioned." If any thing, Kirkpatrick is a little faster and zippier than his later counterparts, which more than makes up in excitement for what it may seem to lack in emotional depth. Kirkpatrick is capable of getting an extraordinary amount of dynamic range out of a harpsichord; just listen to how explosive the fortissimo chords come across in K. 249, just to cite one example.
Newer fans of Domenico Scarlatti's music are enthusiastically advised to set aside the means to acquire Domenico Scarlatti: 21 Sonatas for Harpsichord. Older ones, who may still retain a much-used copy of the Archiv LP, may welcome the opportunity to retire the vinyl at last. However, do hang onto the jacket with its wealth of information and insert -- outside of a fine appreciation of Kirkpatrick's playing written by Jed Distler, the book in this "Blue" series disc is skimpy indeed.