Past Projects | AlexanderNicholls

In the Light of the Pineapple Lamps Concert at the Marmorpalais, Potsdam

The most vivid insights into historical performance practice often emerge through direct, immersive experience.
In this concert, “In the Light of the Pineapple Lamps”, as part of “Königliches Leuchten am Heiligen See” run by the SPSG, Madeleine Bouïssou and I explore the sound world of Friedrich Wilhelm II’s private cello evenings, held in the "Palmensaal" or "Orange Saal" as he knew it, that he had specially built for chamber music within the grounds of his Marmorpalais in Potsdam.

By performing from parts from personal library of the King, using techniques uncovered through my doctoral research, and playing on instruments and setups historically appropriate to the late eighteenth century, we aim to recreate the intimate musical atmosphere of Friedrich Wilhelm's court in the 1790s.

The author Johann Daniel Friedrich Rumpf (1758–1838) described the hall illuminated at night by Ananaslampen — pineapple-shaped wire figures draped in yellow silk, each concealing a small oil lamp. Their light, filtered through the orange trees that lined the room, was said to “resemble gentle moonlight” and create “an exquisitely pleasing effect.” It was within this soft, golden glow that Friedrich Wilhelm II, one of Europe’s most accomplished royal cellists and a major musical patron, performed with his court musicians.

Through this project, we seek to bring back the intimacy and elegance of music as it might have sounded beneath the flickering Ananaslampen of the Marmorpalais.

Programme

Carlo Graziani (–1787)

Sonata in G major for Cello and Basso

Sonata in C major for Cello and Basso

Friedrich Wilhelm II (1744–1797)

Rondeau in E-flat major for Cello and Basso

Jean-Pierre Duport (1741–1818)

Sonata in D major, Op. 2 No. 1, for Cello and Basso

Franz Danzi (1763–1826)

Small Duos on Opera Melodies by Mozart for Two Cellos

"Galant Schemata in Theory & Practice" 2022 Conference

At Galant Schema Studies we launched an international conference on Galant Schemata Theory. The conference took place online from the 29th September to the 1st October 2023.

"Defining the Galant: Music, Style, Terminology" 2023 Conference

At Galant Schema Studies we held an international conference on Galant Schemata Theory. Following the success of the conference "Galant Schemata in Theory & Practice" 2022, a second conference "Defining the Galant: Music, Style, Terminology" . The conference took place online from the 29th September until the 1st October 2023.

Screen Shot 2023-05-17 at 10.38.25 pm.png

"Galant Schema Theory: Contemporary Approaches to Composition, Pedagogy, Performance" 2025 Conference

At Galant Schema Studies we held an international conference on Galant Schemata Theory. The conference took place online from the 21th through 23rd March 2025.

Janitsch Church Sonatas CD

We at the Berlin Friday Academy worked on the production of a second CD of Johann Gottlob Janitsch's trio sonata output. After winning a grant from the Berlin government, we set out recording some of the most beautiful music written by the composer during the 1740s. This CD is a real jewellery box of gems in which we not only explored the premiere recordings of these works, but also through the use of Princess Armilea of Prussia's organ - and instrument which lived a few streets away from Janitsch's front door. The work was released 2022.

Brilliant Classics Information:

https://www.brilliantclassics.com/articles/j/janitsch-church-sonatas

CD release of the work on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zZ4vufcFI4

Screen Shot 2023-05-17 at 4.11.09 pm.png

Janitsch Trio Sonatas CD

Our first CD at the Berlin Friday Academy explored the work of little known composer Janitsch. Funding the work through crowed sources and the American Flute Society, we recorded music from this composer defining the best of Berlin's chamber music from Janitsch's weekly Friday Academies. This CD was a pleasure to record. We explored pitch of Berlin's chamber music of this period (392Hz), as well as consulting the instruments and treatises of the players from the city. The work was released 2021.