KuK-Art.com

Recommended for anyone

The venerable Württemburgisches Kammerorchester under Jörg Faerber,with violinist Linus Roth in the Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219, deliver the clean Mozart performances for which they have long been known, and the live sound is exceptionally good. Recommended for anyone who wants to hear a composer who held the stage (or noble household music room) with Mozart and Haydn in the 1780s...

All Music Guide

***** Wonderful

I think this is the most beautiful music composed and performed. Fortunately it comes with a translation of the Latin.

A. H. Eschenfelder on Amazon.com
(Verified purchase of Gounod's Missa Solemnis)

Wonderfully performed

Charles Gounod's first passion was for clerical music and his Messe solonelle de Sain-Cecile is one of his most beautiful works, filled with marvellous melodies. Gioacchino Rossini turned to religious music later in life and his Stabat Mater is almost opera-like with its sweeping melodies and drifting rhythms. Both pieces are wonderfully performed in this concert recording in which the glorious Maulbronn Choir, conducted by Juergen Budday, is joined by soloists Svetlana Strezeva (soprano), Jolanta Michalska-Taliaferro (mezzo soprano), Willi Stein (tenor), Nikita Storojev (bass) and members of the SWR-symphony-orchestra Baden-Baden & Freiburg.

John Pitt, New Classics UK

***** Very Happy

Beautiful recording and so happy I was able to find this for my mother…. At 87 she does not ask for much! But she wanted to hear this.

Daragh Coulter on Amazon.com
(Verified purchase of Gounod's Missa Solemnis)

***** Welcome Home

Just one of those major works that you always adored and never took the time to add to your library. For those of us getting to the more senior side of being senior citizens,my heart bursts with love on hearing the Sanctus. Every time!

'SENIORNERD' on eMusic.com about this recording of Gounod's Missa Solemnis

Recommended by the Downbeat Magazine in the 'Holiday Gift Guide 2019'

The German, Belgian and Dutch members of the New Orleans Jazz Band of Cologne find their passion in New Orleans traditional jazz. "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (K&K Verlagsanstalt 134; 66:52) maintains the level of energy necessary to keep nostalgia away on this live album. A round-robin of decent solos is the order of the day.

A rich and warm voice in a splendidly recorded and produced release

Sarah Wegener enthralls listeners with the richness and warmth of her voice and approaches every role in a chamber musical way. She regularly works with Kent Nagano, Philippe Herreweghe, Thomas Hengelbrock, Heinz Holliger, Michael Hofstetter and Frieder Bernius. She studied with Professor Jaeger-Bohm in Stuttgart and took part in master classes with Dame Gwyneth Jones and Renee Morloc.
Here, Sarah performs with the Ensemble Il Capriccio arias and cantatas from the baroque era, thematically enhanced with modern compositions. The release documents a concert at the church of the German UNESCO World Heritage Site Maulbronn Monastery in Germany 2015, splendidly recorded and produced by Andreas Otto Grimminger and Josef-Stefan Kindler for their series "Maulbronn Monastery Edition".

Presto Classical, November 2016

***** Exquisite piece, used for HRH's Harry and Meghan Wedding!

"Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne, HWV 74" was used as processional for HRH's Harry and Meghan Wedding!
I fell in love with this aria when Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan used it as the processional for their wedding. After researching it, the context of the lyrics actually fits quite well with the Song of Solomon scripture reading of earthly wonder of love and Bishop Curry's animated homily concerning love's redemptive power toward heavenly peace on earth! In Handel's / Queen Anne's era of "the divine right of kings" (queen, in this case), this piece credits her Majesty with bringing about said "heavenly peace on earth", going into some detail in so doing, speaking of the lion lying down with the lamb, etc. I haven't heard if the "Ode" was chosen with this knowledge, or if it is a most remarkable irony. The planning for their wedding being spectacular as it was, I suspect it is the former. Whatever the case, while haunting, it is a most beautiful piece of classical music and I'm so grateful to Harry and Meghan for bringing it back to public attention in this way!

Customer Review on Amazon.com, Juni 17, 2018

A memorable performance

Young players excel in compelling live performances of two favourite symphonies
The members of the New Symphony Orchestra, drawn from the Sofia Radio Orchestra, are a comparatively young ensemble founded in 1971. The writer of the insert-note suggests that their musical style is "sentimental, due to the members' experience recording film music". Sorry, but there is no trace of sentimentality in either performance. Instead, here is a superb example of the intense concentration that can come with live musicmaking from eager young players, well rehearsed, in front of a receptive audience.
In the Scottish Symphony, the character of the playing combines an effervescing vitality and a natural Slavonic warmth, particularly from the full-toned strings. Petko Dimitrov shapes Mendelssohn's lovely lyrical opening with an appealing simplicity, and in the first climax of the vivace of the exposition his surge of animation has the players all but scampering in their exhilaration. The one snag is that the important exposition repeat is, alas, omitted. The scherzo sparkles, the slow movement is beautifully shaped yet has a sombre underlay which prevents any suggestion of blandness, and after the dancing vivacissimo the close of the finale is expansive, almost Klemperer-like in its spacious grandeur. Overall, a performance of much character.
Schubert's Unfinished is even finer, the epitome of Romanticism, the quiet opening mysterious, darkly evocative, yet with incisive drama soon to offset the lyricism. Here the exposition repeat is played, and used to build an onward propulsion which is very compelling. Dimitrov's modest change of pace for the exquisitely gentle opening of the second movement is perfectly judged, and the arrival of the secondary theme is beautifully prepared by the violins. The woodwind contributions, first the clarinet (2'06'') and the naturally following, equally delicate oboe (2'36'') are almost like a question and answer, before the drama of the bold trombone-dominated tutti (2'56'') which is arresting without being coarse.
But it is the gently ruminative quality of the playing - of wind and strings alike - that makes this performance so memorable. The interplay between apparent serenity and the music's bolder progress is like a contrast between twilight apprehension and the daylight assertion of life's irrepressible advance, with a haunting sense of resignation conveyed in the movement's guileless closing bars. The concert hall recording was made in simple 'two-track stereo' and the effect is real, slightly distanced, but tangible. Most rewarding.

Ivan March, Gramophone Magazine

An extraordinary reading that rises to the moment

The severe sound environment of the Maulbronn Abbey, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the German state of Baden-Württemberg that dates to the twelfth century, has given rise to a series of recordings covering varying aspects of music from the Western concert tradition. That sound environment is put to intelligent use in this string quartet recital, which pairs well-worn pieces but gives them unusually intense interpretations that are heightened by the hard resonance of the sound. Sample the very beginning of the Schubert "String Quartet in D minor, D. 810" "Death and the Maiden", to get yourself into the disc; the opening chords might be described as slashing. Move on to the second-movement variation set built on the song that gives the quartet its name; where many quartets let a sort of debilitated gloom hang over much of the movement, everything here is a life-and-death struggle. The stronger of the two performances on the disc is that of Janácek's 1928 "String Quartet No. 2," subtitled "Intimate Letters," a hypersubjective work whose emotional content could have been drawn straight from one of Sigmund Freud's contemporaneous psychotherapy sessions. The work is as dissonant as almost any other of its period that does not completely reject tonality, but the dissonance is used in the service of untrammelled expression. The letters evoked are those between the composer and his married mistress. Yet the Amati Quartet's performance, ringing around the monastery walls, brings to mind, to use John le Carré's memorable simile, thoughts that are like birds stuck in a greenhouse. It's an extraordinary reading that rises to the moment offered by a specific performance space, and the disc as a whole, while not for those who like the emotional temperature of their classical music kept to medium, is decisively recommended to those wanting to try out the Maulbronn series.

James Manheim, All Music Guide

I enjoyed it tremendously

It took me completely unawares when the dramatic opening bars of "Death and the Maiden" gripped me by the throat and threatened immediate life-extinction; I felt as if I were living the story myself, and though no maiden, I could certainly relate to her death-obsessed plight. This version is almost orchestral in feeling. While it is true that there is a huge amount of reverb in this space - well, it is a monastery - this only partially accounts for the destructive vehemence that the Amati gives this work. They see and saw their way as if it were the world's last concert, or the devil himself was in the audience. I enjoyed it tremendously...

Steven E. Ritter, FANFARE Magazine

Another thumbs up for this extremely enterprising German label

The enterprising German label K&K has made a name for themselves by issuing critically acclaimed recordings of oratorios and other sacred works in the haunting location of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Maulbronn Monastery. This CD features two string quartets by masters in the genre, Franz Schubert and Leoš Janácek played by the legendary Amati Quartet, one of the finest ensembles currently recording. Both works come across quite beautifully in the sumptuous acoustic and as expected, the Amati play with their exemplary brilliance especially in the "Intimate Letters" which is certainly very hard to bring off. This is another thumbs up for this extremely enterprising German label.

Gerald Fenech on Classical Net

HI-RES AUDIO

Awarded by Qobuz with the HI-RES AUDIO

March 2012

HI-RES AUDIO

Awarded by Qobuz with the HI-RES AUDIO

March 2012

The Rastatt Favorite Palace in Germany

This concert took place in the "Sala Terrena" (Garden Hall) of Rastatt Favorite Palace (Schloss Favorite Rastatt) in Germany. The Palace is the oldest German "porcelain palace" and the only one to survive almost unchanged to this day. The palace and the garden are one of 60 historic monuments in the Germany's Southwest. The "State Organisation for Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg" (in German: "Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg") makes accessible, communicate, develops and preserves these state-owned historic monuments with the aim of preserving the authenticity of the cultural heritage, filling them with life and preserving them for future generations. Detailed information about these unique "Soundscapes" can be found at: www.schloesser-und-gaerten.de

***** A memorable mash-up

A musical revolution occurred in about 1720, with the "style galant" replacing the more learned and complicated music in vogue before then. K&K Verlagsanstalt, which specializes in audiophile recordings made in historic churches and palaces, has put together a winning project here, with the venerable Quantz Collegium (established in 1936) performing highly appealing music from the Garden Hall of the Rastatt Favorite Palace in Baden-Württemberg. Recorded at two live concerts, we have here four concertos for viola or flute, or both, by Graupner, Telemann and FWH Benda, all written in the accessible, tuneful new style. Mention should be made of Josef-Stefan Kindler's superb photos in the CD notes, which I at first took for paintings in the Rococo style of Tiepolo. They capture both the spirit of the original music and venue and that of the Quantz Collegium and K&K's Historically Informed reconstructions.
"Every current of fashion or of worldview", says Walter Benjamin in The Arcades Project, "derives its force from what is forgotten." Three centuries on, the stripping down of J. S. Bach's erudite polyphonic puzzles can seem, according to one's sensibilities or mood, either a vital breath of fresh air or a savage dumbing down for the kind of mindless 18th century twits personified by Hugh Laurie's Prince George in Blackadder's Third Series. Luckily we can still take pleasure in the simple joys of melody and a direct and honest, if sometimes guileless, clarity. This music is well-crafted, but the strongest movements, those in Telemann's Viola Concerto especially, can seem very much self-aware. It won't be long before the streamlining process leads to a new round of mannerist complexities.
Though one won't find the final degree of authentic style from the Quantz Collegium, including the three soloists, flutist Jochen Baier and violists Agata Zieba and Killian Ziegler, there is much to admire in these performances. The admirably spare technology and truly galant way of playing combined with the elaborate costumes and the rococo porcelain excesses of the venue make for a memorable mash-up.

Dean Frey on several-instruments.blogspot.com, on Arkiv Music and on Amazon

A terrific performance...

A terrific performance and the equally rare chance to hear one of Europe's most thoughtful Ensembles. Sándor Veress has been overshadowed by his Hungarian compatriots, but on the rare occasions when I encounter his music I always find it worth hearing. His First Quartet, premiered in Prague in 1935 but written four years earlier, is demonstrably from the same soil as Bartók and Kodály, but quite individual. Its first movement is in slow-fast-slow form, after which comes an Andante and finally a highly rhythmic Vivo. The German based Orpheus Quartet gives a terrific performance to end this concert, recorded live in the convent at Maulbronn... The disc is worth pursuing for the rare Veress and the equally rare chance to hear one of Europe´s most thoughtful ensembles. Since the disc was made, the Orpheus has changed its second violinist and we have had the appalling news of the death of leader Charles-André Linale.

Tully Potter, The Strad UK

***** A real feeling of being in the concert

I first heard the Orpheus Quartet in Spain and have collected their studio recordings. I was eager to hear them again, and K&K's series of live concert recordings from Maulbronn has given me an opportunity to hear how they were playing two years on. However, whilst writing this review, I am saddened to learn from the Orpheus Quartet website that their leader, Charles-André Linale, was killed in a car crash last month. Chamber music is given in the lay refectory, and reverberation is long during pauses after Beethoven's sf chords, but you soon get used to that, and it is more than compensated for by the bloom on the sound - you have a real feeling of being there with the audience. The Orpheus four have exactly the right feeling for the not-easy Schubert Quartettsatz and Beethoven's Op. 59/2, which can be a long haul; with all repeats, it was gripping from beginning to end. In this June 2002 concert their novelty was a quartet by Sandor Veress, an excellent composer heard infrequently in UK. Without any studio editing, the accuracy of these performances is remarkable and testifies to the good health of this top string quartet in what, it transpires, will have been one of their last recorded concerts with their multinational founder members; the exceptional performance of the Beethoven a worthy memorial for Charles-André Linale.

Andy Smith on Amazon.com

Featured by Amazon Music

An excerpt of this release is featured in the playlist
BEST OF CLASSICAL MUSIC - Popular classical melodies interpreted by outstanding musicians and orchestras of our time

Curated by the Amazon Music Editorial Team

***** BEST RECORDING

This is the best recording I have found of Dvorak's String Serenade!

A customer on iTunes

***** My favourite

Your version of Dvorak's String Serenade is my favourite... Gotta loveit...damn! This guy is so good!

A listener on YouTube

***** An ideal introduction

An ideal introduction to one of Poland's most talented and exciting young conductors, whose work has been compared to that of Carlos Kleiber and Svjatoslav Richter.

New Classics UK

***** Five Stars

PLEASED. ORDER.

Laura J Hefner on Amazon.com (Verified purchase of the Audio CD)

BEST SELLER on Amazon.com

February 16, 2015: Dvorak's String Serenade Op.22 is BEST SELLER on Amazon.com:
Best Sellers Rank 1 in 'Symphonies / Romantic'
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***** Superb

I heard this piece (Dvorak's String Serenade) at a summer concert in Symphony Hall and was thoroughly enchanted by it. I downloaded it on to my ipod and it features regularly. It is a very melodic, uplifting, life-enhancing piece, superbly played.

Mr. P. Skeldon on Amazon.uk (Verified Purchase)

A heady experience...

This beautifully-recorded CD brings together two fine works in what can only be termed as superb interpretations by Polish orchestras. K&K are an extremely enterprising German label who have given us some outstanding recordings in the choral, organ and piano and genre from such wonderful locations as centuries old monasteries so their new attention to orchestral music is very commendable indeed. Mozart's 'Linz' is one of those works were a carefully nuanced approach reaps considerable dividends as the great Peter Maag amply demonstrated. Przytocki is a consummate interpreter bringing a beautiful lift to the First movement and a busy energy to the Finale which are two miraculously charged movements. He is also in his element in the lovely Serenade for Strings by Dvořák which dances around quite ravishingly especially in the bucolic scherzo. This CD receives plaudits all around from me and it deserves a hearty recommendation. The presentation is beautiful with large photographs and the distinctive K&K colours provide for a heady experience which is reinforced by the interpretations.

Gerald Fenech on Classical Net

***** FAV DVORAK

The 'Beethoven Akademie Orchester' does Dvorak justice with its excellent performance of his serenade. The 2nd and 3rd movements are definitely my favorites.

'J Dog1945' on iTunes

Atmospheric, emotional and moving

In this recording of a Maulbronn Monastery choir concert, the Don Cossacks Soloists Wanja Hlibka sing works from the Russian Orthodox tradition by Maximowitsch (Wir verbeugen uns vor Deinem Kreuz), M. Lovorsky, Pjotr Iljitsch Tschaikowsky (In der Kirche), Alexandre Gretschaninow (Credo), Kastalsky, Fatejev, Dimitrij Bortnjanskij (Tedeum Laudamus) and the Kiev Melodies. The compositions carefully selected for the liturgically conceived Musica Sacra reveal surprising new insights into the high art of sacred Russian music and tradition. The outstanding a cappella ensemble performing here was founded in 1991 by Wanja Hlibka and George Tymczenko, who were both formerly soloists in the acclaimed Don Cossacks Choir until its disbandment in 1979. The Don Cossacks Soloists perform live and without amplification, even in such large venues as the Musikhalle in Hamburg, the Messehalle in Frankfurt or the Gewandhaus in Leipzig. The rich and emotional music of the Russian Orthodox Church is not often heard in the Western world, making this atmospheric and moving CD a wonderful to the beautifully produced Maulbronn Edition.

new-classics.co.uk

***** A superb collection of excellent recordings

I recommend it!

A customer at Barnes & Noble

Outstanding!

The German Magazine 'Neue Chorzeit'

Comments on YouTube

"Beautiful interpretation" (Gabriel Moinet)
"A fantastic work, so great and so independent form Bach. Handel and Bach equal giants of the baroque." (shnimmuc)
"Wonderful! Viele Danke." (Kat Morgan)
"Very Beautiful Voice" (Teddy Smith)

***** One of the best German choirs...

The Maulbronner Kammerchor, conducted by Juergen Budday, can serve as a model example of the best that there is in the German style of this art: roundly shaped clear phrases, deliberately designed shadings of dynamics, precise articulation an a homogeneous balance of well-cultured voices. These caracteristics are symptomatic, regardless of whether they are singing a motet or a modern psalm, light in presentation but studded with thoroughly rehearsed effects...

A customer on Amazon.com

Commissioned by the angels to bring this music to earth…

Sacred and secular songs from Armenia performed by eight young women (they look to be in their 20s) who sing as though commissioned by the angels to bring this music to earth. Their sound is reverberant and then some, but they come by the echoes honestly. This was recorded in concert at Maulbronn, an 850-year-old Romanesque monastery in southern Germany where constricted sonics are not a way of life. You won't have any trouble distinguishing the modal chants offered to the glory of God from the images of moonlight, wedding dresses, and houses by the sea evoked in the secular offerings. It's beautiful Music!

© 2019 American Record Guide

Featured on Spotify

This release is/was featured on Spotify's weekly list of 50 notable classical new releases, Nov. 9 till Nov. 16, 2018

Spotify Editorial

Featured by Amazon

This release is featured in the playlist 'Classical Dinner Party', compilated by Amazon's music experts.

Amazon.com, December 2019