Antonio Salieri was influential as an opera composer and later in life as a teacher to the likes of Beethoven, Schubert and Liszt – quite unlike the sinister and entirely fictional portrayal he received in the film Amadeus. Both of his keyboard concertos were composed during his early years in Vienna and reflect influences from Haydn and the galant style of Johann Christian Bach. The Harpsichord Concerto in B flat major is broader and more elaborate but lighter in mood when compared with the stormy first movement of the Harpsichord Concerto in C major. Heard here in its world-première recording, the Keyboard Sonata in C major presents as a suite of short independent pieces, while the short March in D major has only recently been discovered in a Berlin archive.

Ensemble Sezione Aurea, founded by Luca Giardini and Filippo Pantieri, unites top European musicians to explore the Italian vocal and instrumental repertoire from the 17th to the 19th centuries. Their philologically informed approach, supported by musicologists, revives forgotten works using instruments and set-ups that closely align with the researched repertoire. The ensemble has performed across Italy, Europe, and Japan at prestigious venues. Award-winning recordings include Ignazio Cirri’s six Sonatas for violin and harpsichord and “Amor Tiranno” with countertenor Carlo Vistoli, which won the “Diamant d’Opera” from Opéra Magazine.