Brotherly in baroque

‘They look like brothers,’ Gramophone wrote about the engaging duo Théotime Langlois de Swarte and Justin Taylor. These young pioneers of early music are filling concert halls around the globe with their inquisitive interpretations of familiar repertoire and unearthed gems from the past. This time, the Baroque era is in the spotlight. While Purcell and Corelli are familiar names to many, it’s high time that Henry Eccles and Pancrace Royer receive their due recognition as well.

François and Louis Francoeur were real brothers. One was le cadet (the youngest), the other le fils aîné (the firstborn), and both wrote music you can’t sit still to. Corelli’s La Follia is one of the most famous melodies of the Baroque period, if not of all time. Contrary to popular belief, Corelli did not create that melody. It is one of the oldest documented musical themes in Europe, with numerous composers incorporating it into their own compositions. Corelli wrote no less than 23 brilliant variations on it in his Violin Sonata Op. 5 No. 12.