👉 Available on all streaming platforms
Composer: Domenico Scarlatti
Works: 15 selected sonatas (K. 491, 141, 185, 492, 238, 193, 128, 466, 125, 263, 386, 462, 380, 447, 448)
Performer: Javier Perianes, piano
Label: harmonia mundi (2025)
Duration: 66 min
Recorded: October 2024, Leibniz Saal, Hannover
By Damián Autorino
Editor at Moto Perpetuo
When we think of Domenico Scarlatti (1685–1757), we often picture a composer sitting at the harpsichord in a Spanish palace, writing dazzling sonatas for his royal pupil, Maria Barbara. Unlike Bach or Handel, Scarlatti left behind few writings and little documentation—his true voice is his music, more than 550 sonatas full of fire, humour, and invention.
These sonatas were conceived for the harpsichord, though early pianos were available at the Spanish court, and it’s possible Scarlatti experimented with them. On the piano, they gain a different kind of weight and colour: the percussive brilliance of repeated notes becomes more dramatic, and the singing lines take on a lyrical glow.
Enter Javier Perianes, one of Spain’s leading pianists, admired for his recordings of Falla, Granados, Mompou, and Ravel. With Scarlatti, Perianes balances respect for the harpsichord style with the expressive possibilities of the modern piano. His playing is rhythmically free yet always clear, and he brings both technical brilliance and warmth to this music.
This album gathers 15 sonatas, chosen from different periods of Scarlatti’s output. They show the composer’s many faces: the ceremonial brilliance of the Sonata K.491 in D major, the toccata-like fire of the famous K.141 in D minor, the lyrical calm of the K.185 in F minor, and in K.386 he combines technical fireworks with expressive bite. Perianes lets each piece breathe in its own character—sometimes flamboyant, sometimes intimate, but always with clarity and charm.
Listening to these sonatas, one hears why Scarlatti continues to fascinate pianists: his music looks simple on the page, often in a compact binary form, yet it holds endless possibilities. And in Perianes’ hands, it becomes a celebration of imagination and colour.
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