Telemann Three Concertos for Violin and Orchestra -TWV 51:a1 A minor, 51:D9 D major, 51:g1 G minor-

No fewer than twenty-five violin concertos by Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767) have come down to us over the years - presumably only a fraction of his total output in this geme. But even this corpus, though reduced by time, reveals that Telemann, like other composers of his day, regarded the violin as the most important and most versatile of all solo instruments. Two of his operas - Der neumodische Liebhaber Damon (1719, TWV 21:8) and Die last-tragende Liebe oder Emma und Eginhard (1728, TWY 27:25) - open with introductory violin concertos; there are eight concertos for two violins; and the violin plays an important role in virtually all his concertos for two or more solo instruments.