KuK-Art.com

I

n early December 1849, Robert Schumann composed in Dresden within five days the "Three Romances op. 94" in the original version for oboe and piano, which he gave to his wife Clara for Christmas as "his hundredth opusculum". The first performances were given by most renowned musicians: on 27 December 1849 in a home concert with the concertmaster of the Royal Chapel, François Schubert, and on 24 January 1850 with the composer and pianist Carl Reinecke in the Leipzig Gewandhaus. This quiet lyrical work is the starting point for further works in which Schumann experimented with freer forms and explored further sound options of the wind instruments in combination with a piano.

The "Sonata in G minor BWV 1020" has an eventful history. Shortly after its composition, it was first identified as a sonata for violin and keyboard instrument by Johann Sebastian Bach, but doubts about the old master's authorship arose as early as the time of Philipp Spitta. The style did not suit Bach, and a reliable copy in Vienna also mentions Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach as the composer. The attribution to the violin was also doubted, as there were no violin-specific effects. The whole style fitted much better to a flute. And although the sonata is now attributed to the Bach son Carl Philipp Emanuel, it nevertheless retains the ordinal number from the Bachwerkeverzeichnis. The first movement is characterized by harpsichord arpeggios, while the solo instrument quotes a theme from the great B minor flute sonata by father Johann Sebastian Bach. The second movement is pastoral, while the last movement comes along impetuously in the gesture of "Sturm und Drang".

The French conductor, arranger and composer Paul Bonneau (1918-1995) became known primarily through his film music and compositions in the field of entertainment music. He composed four works for saxophone solo, one of which is the "Caprice en forme Valse" in 1950. With typical French characteristics and difficult technical passages, it is a highly appreciated and varied piece for solo saxophone, in which large patches and small speckles of colour ignite a musical firework.

Claude Debussy loved the sea, where he found peace and quiet. He spent a lot of time in Cannes with his wife. And he was fascinated by the play with sounds. The "Rêverie" was probably composed between 1880 and 1884, and in a meditative character Debussy already creates a dreamlike atmosphere with a special sound, to which the gentle, repetitive theme contributes. The "Two Arabesques", written in 1888 and 1891, are two of Debussy's earliest impressionist pieces, in which the composer seems to change modes and keys frequently. Arabesque No. 2 is a fast, lively piece that also has echoes of the pentatonic.

Gustav Bumcke played a major role in establishing the saxophone in concert life. From his trip to Paris in 1902 he had brought back a whole set of saxophones to Berlin, where he subsequently founded various saxophone ensembles. He wrote more than 40 compositions for saxophone in all genres and a five-volume series of saxophone etudes. The "Notturno in E flat major op. 45" did not appear in print until 1992. The lyrical, aria-like melody in the saxophone, the flowing semiquaver motion of the harp and the limited length of the phrases pleasantly wrap up an etude to improve intonation and the ability to play in an ensemble.

Ida Gotkovsky's aim is to create universal works of art with her music, which in its characteristic contemporary language and energetic structures contributes to the unity of musical expression of all times. "Eolienne" was composed in 1970 for flute and harp. The five movements of the work are of very different character, like extremely different pictures, which together form a single, poetic work.

The composer and music educationalist Jacques de la Presle admired Fauré, Ravel, Debussy and Poulenc, while rejecting Wagner and Stravinsky. "Le jardin mouillé for harp" was composed in 1913, triggered by the poem "Le jardin mouillé" by Henri de Regnier about a rain-soaked garden, in which the visitor listens softly to the whispering of the drops and can perceive the different sounds of the drops on leaves, gravel or grass.

In contrast to Jacques de la Presle, Jacques Ibert was quite open to the music of a Stravinsky and musically can be located between neoclassicism and modernism. Ibert composed "Entr'acte" in 1937, a playful Caprice that is not committed to absolute music and belongs to the standard repertoire for harpists who love the lively piece in rondo form with a slight Spanish touch.

The Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467 "Elvira Madigan", by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K. 467, was completed on 9 March 1785 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, four weeks after the completion of the previous D minor concerto, K. 466. The concerto has three movements. The famous Andante, in the subdominant key of F major, is in three parts. The opening section is for orchestra only and features muted strings. The first violins play with a dreamlike melody over an accompaniment consisting of second violins and violas playing repeated-note triplets and the cellos and bass playing pizzicato arpeggios. All of the main melodic material of the movement is contained in this orchestral introduction, in either F major or F minor. The second section introduces the solo piano and starts off in F major. It is not a literal repeat, though, as after the first few phrases, new material is interjected which ventures off into different keys. When familiar material returns, the music is now in the dominant keys of C minor and C major. Then it modulates to G minor, then B-flat major, then F minor, which transitions to the third section of the movement. The third section begins with the dreamlike melody again, but this time in the relative key of F major's parallel key, A-flat major. Over the course of this final section, the music makes its way back to the tonic keys of F minor and then F major and a short coda concludes the movement. The second movement was featured in the 1967 Swedish film "Elvira Madigan". As a result, the piece has become widely known as the "Elvira Madigan concerto". Also Neil Diamond's song "Song Sung Blue" (1972) bases on a theme from the andante movement. (From Wikipedia, the Free Encyklopedia)

Six Pieces for Piano, Op. 19, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is considered as the most important Russian composer of the 19th century. The Six Pieces for Piano, Op. 19, were composed in 1873.

The French Suite No. 5 in G Major, BWV 816, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

The French Suites, BWV 812-817, are six suites which Johann Sebastian Bach wrote for the clavier (harpsichord or clavichord) between the years of 1722 and 1725. Although Suites Nos. 1 to 4 are typically dated to 1722, it is possible that the first was written somewhat earlier. The suites were later given the name "French" (first recorded usage by Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg in 1762). Likewise, the English Suites received a later appellation. The name was popularised by Bach's biographer Johann Nikolaus Forkel, who wrote in his 1802 biography of Bach, "One usually calls them French Suites because they are written in the French manner." This claim, however, is inaccurate: like Bach's other suites, they follow a largely Italian convention. There is no surviving definitive manuscript of these suites, and ornamentation varies both in type and in degree across manuscripts. The courantes of the first (in D minor) and third (in B minor) suites are in the French style, the courantes of the other four suites are all in the Italian style. In any case, Bach also employed dance movements (such as the polonaise of the sixth suite) that are foreign to the French manner. Usually, the swift second movement after the allemande is named either courante (French style) or corrente (Italian style), but in all these suites the second movements are named courante, according to the Bach catalog listing, which supports the suggestion that these suites are "French". Some of the manuscripts that have come down to us are titled "Suites Pour Le Clavecin", which is what probably led to the tradition of calling them "French" Suites. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor, K. 466, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466, was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1785. The first performance took place at the Mehlgrube Casino in Vienna on 11 February 1785, with the composer as the soloist. A few days after the first performance, the composer's father, Leopold, visiting in Vienna, wrote to his daughter Nannerl about her brother's recent success: "[I heard] an excellent new piano concerto by Wolfgang, on which the copyist was still at work when we got here, and your brother didn't even have time to play through the rondo because he had to oversee the copying operation." It is written in the key of D minor. Other works by the composer in that key include the Fantasia K. 397 for piano, the Requiem, a Kyrie, a mass, the aria "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" from the opera "The Magic Flute" and parts of the opera "Don Giovanni". It is the first of two piano concertos written in a minor key (No. 24 in C minor being the other). The young Ludwig van Beethoven admired this concerto and kept it in his repertoire. Composers who wrote cadenzas for it include Beethoven (WoO 58), Charles-Valentin Alkan, Johannes Brahms (WoO 14), Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Ferruccio Busoni, and Clara Schumann. One of Mozart's favorite pianos that he played while he was living in Vienna had a pedal-board that was operated with the feet, like that of an organ. This piano that Mozart owned is on display at Mozart House in Salzburg, but currently it has no pedal-board. The fact that Mozart had a piano with a pedal-board is reported in a letter written by his father, Leopold, who visited his son while he lived in Vienna. Among Mozart's piano works, none are explicitly written with a part for a pedal-board. However, according to Leopold's report, at the first performance of Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor (K. 466), Mozart, who was the soloist and conductor, used his own piano, equipped with a pedal-board. Presumably the pedal-board was used to reinforce the left-hand part, or add lower notes than the standard keyboard could play. Because Mozart was also an expert on the organ, operating a pedal-board with his feet was no harder than using only his hands. The concerto is scored for solo piano, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani and strings. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" (or simply "Joy") is the most common English title of a piece of music derived from a chorale setting of the cantata "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147" ("Heart and Mouth and Deed and Life"), composed by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1723. The same music on different stanzas of a chorale closes both parts of the cantata. A transcription by the English pianist Myra Hess (1890–1965) was published in 1926 for piano solo and in 1934 for piano duet.[1] It is often performed slowly and reverently at wedding ceremonies, as well as during Christian festive seasons like Christmas and Easter. Bach composed a four-part setting with independent orchestral accompaniment of two stanzas of the hymn "Jesu, meiner Seelen Wonne", written by Martin Janus in 1661, which was sung to a melody by the violinist and composer Johann Schop, "Werde munter, mein Gemüthe". The movements conclude the two parts of the cantata. Bach scored the chorale movements (6 and 10) from "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" for choir, trumpet, violin, optionally oboe, viola, and basso continuo. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11, by Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)

Chopin loves singing and as a singing poet of the piano, he inveigles into the universe of dreams. Chopin composed the piano concerto in e minor at the age of 20 during spring/summer of 1830 in Warsaw. It emerged shortly after his concerto in f minor and belongs to the standard repertoire of concert literature. In fall 1830, Chopin left Warsaw to go to Paris. This work is based mainly on polish dancing rhythms; especially prominent is the krakowiak in the last movement. Eventually, his work is characterized by its exceptional cantability. Chopin writes opera for the piano. He most likely performed this concerto himself in Warsaw in the same string casting it can be heard here. (Franz Vorraber)

8 Pieces for Piano, Op. 76, by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

The 8 Piano Pieces op. 76 by Johannes Brahms comprise four Capriccios and Intermezzi each. With this collection of character pieces, published in February 1879, Brahms came forward again after a long time with a work for solo piano, which was premiered by Hans von Bülow in Berlin on October 29, 1879. While he had already composed the first Capriccio in 1871, he wrote the remaining pieces in 1878 in Pörtschach on Lake Wörth. The collection, originally divided into two booklets, shows the influence of Robert Schumann and Frédéric Chopin, whose complete editions published by Breitkopf & Härtel Brahms supervised at this time. In condensed form, the mostly three-part pieces already point to the internalized late style of Opera 116 to 119, whose characteristics include the multi-layered piano movement, chromaticism, and rhythmic refinements. The piano pieces appeared only after Brahms had not written any independent solo piano works for an extended period. After the Paganini Variations published in 1866, the Waltzes for piano four hands op. 39, which he held in high esteem, and the first part of the Hungarian Dances, initially also written for four hands, there was a long pause in publication in this field, which ended only in 1879. For Andrea Bonatta this shows how difficult it was for Brahms to find new expressive possibilities after the pianistic explorations of the virtuoso Handel and Paganini Variations. For the pianist, chamber musician and gifted sight-reading player, this phase did not mean that he would have completely abandoned the piano. In addition to the Waltzes and Hungarian Dances, he wrote the Sonata for Piano and Violoncello op 38, the Liebeslieder Waltzes op 52, the version for two pianos of his Haydn Variations op 56b, the Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor op 60 and the Neue Liebeslieder op 65 during this period. In 1878, he also began to work on his symphonic Second Piano Concerto in B flat major; the piano thus played an important role in chamber and later concertante music. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator)

The 3 Mazurkas, Op. 50, by Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)

Chopin's "Mazurkas" - he wrote at least 69 Mazurkas - are based on a traditional Polish folk dance in triple meter with an accent on the third or on the second beat, called "Mazurek". Chopin started composing his mazurkas in 1825, and continued composing them until 1849, the year of his death.

The Piano Concerto No. 16 in D Major, K. 451, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Piano Concerto No. 16 in D major, K. 451, is a concertante work for piano, or pianoforte, and orchestra by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart composed the concerto for performance at a series of concerts at the Vienna venues of the Trattnerhof and the Burgtheater in the first quarter of 1784, where he was himself the soloist. Mozart noted this concerto as complete on 22 March 1784 in his catalog, and performed the work later that month. Cliff Eisen has postulated that this performance was on 31 March 1784. The work is orchestrated for solo piano, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani and strings. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Piano Sonata No. 14 in A Minor by Franz Schubert (1797-1828)

Franz Schubert's Piano Sonata in A minor, D 784 (posthumously published as Op. 143), is one of Schubert's major compositions for the piano. Schubert composed the work in February 1823, perhaps as a response to his illness the year before. It was however not published until 1839, eleven years after his death. It was given the opus number 143 and a dedication to Felix Mendelssohn by its publishers. The D 784 sonata, Schubert's last to be in three movements, is seen by many to herald a new era in Schubert's output for the piano, and to be a profound and sometimes almost obsessively tragic work. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Piano Sonata No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 22, by Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

The Piano Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 was composed by Robert Schumann from 1830 to 1838. It was his last full-length attempt at the sonata genre, the other completed ones being the Piano Sonata No. 1 in F sharp minor (Op. 11) and the Piano Sonata No. 3 in F minor (Op. 14); he later wrote Three Piano Sonatas for the Young Op. 118. Because it was published before the F minor sonata, it was given an earlier sequence number (No. 2) but still kept its later opus number (Op. 22). This has caused confusion, and recordings of the G minor Sonata have sometimes been published as "Sonata No. 3". There was also an earlier sonata in F minor, which Schumann abandoned; this is sometimes referred to as "Sonata No. 4". Among his sonatas, this one is very frequently performed and recorded. Because of its great variety and highly virtuosic demands, it is enjoyed both by audiences and performers alike. Clara Schumann claimed to be "endlessly looking forward to the second sonata", but nevertheless Robert revised it several times. At Clara Schumann's request, the original finale, marked Presto passionato was replaced with a less difficult movement in 1838. The Andantino of the sonata is based on Schumann's early song "Im Herbste"; Jensen describes the first movement as having "a concern with motivic structure". It is dedicated to Schumann's friend the pianist Henriette Voigt and was published in September 1839. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Serenade for Strings in E Major, Op. 22 / B. 52,
by Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)

Antonín Dvořák's Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22 was composed in just two weeks in May 1875. It remains one of the composer's more popular orchestral works to this day. 1875 was a fruitful year for Dvořák, during which he wrote his Symphony No. 5, String Quintet No. 2, Piano Trio No. 1, the opera Vanda, and the Moravian Duets. These were happy times in his life. His marriage was young, and his first son had been born. For the first time in his life, he was being recognized as a composer and without fear of poverty. He received a generous stipend from a commission in Vienna, which allowed him to compose his Fifth Symphony and several chamber works as well as the Serenade. Dvořák is said to have written the Serenade in just 12 days, from 3-14 May. The piece was premiered in Prague on 10 December 1876 by Adolf Čech and the combined orchestras of the Czech and German theatres. It was published in 1877 in the composer's piano duet arrangement by Emanuel Starý in Prague. The score was printed two years later by Bote and Bock, Berlin. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Concerto for 2 Violins in D Minor, BWV 1043,
by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

The Concerto for Two Violins, Strings, and Continuo in D minor, BWV 1043, also known as "The Double Violin Concerto", is perhaps one of the most famous works by Johann Sebastian Bach and considered among the best examples of the work of the late Baroque period. Bach may have written it between 1717 and 1723 when he was the Kapellmeister at the court of Anhalt-Köthen, Germany, though the work's performance materials for the Ordinaire Concerten that Bach ran as the Director of the Collegium Musicum in Leipzig are dated c. 1730–31. Later in 1739, in Leipzig, he created an arrangement for two harpsichords, transposed into C minor, BWV 1062. In addition to the two soloists, the concerto is scored for strings and basso continuo. The concerto is characterized by the subtle yet expressive relationship between the violins throughout the work. The musical structure of this piece uses fugal imitation and much counterpoint. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Concerto Grosso in D Minor, Op. 3 No. 11, RV 565, from: "L'Estro Armonico",
by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

L'Estro Armonico (the harmonic inspiration), Antonio Vivaldi's Op. 3, is a set of 12 concertos for stringed instruments, first published in Amsterdam in 1711. Vivaldi's Twelve Trio Sonatas, Op. 1, and Twelve Violin Sonatas, Op. 2, only contained sonatas, thus L'estro armonico was his first collection of concertos appearing in print. It was also the first time he chose a foreign publisher, Estienne Roger, instead of an Italian. Each concerto was printed in eight parts: four violins, two violas, cello and continuo. The continuo part was printed as a figured bass for violone and harpsichord. The concertos belong to the concerto a 7 format, that is: for each concerto there are seven independent parts. In each consecutive group of three concertos, the first is a concerto for four violins, the second for two violins, and the third a solo violin concerto. The cello gets solistic passages in several of the concertos for four and two violins, so that a few of the concertos conform to the traditional Roman concerto grosso format where a concertino of two violins and cello plays in contrast to a string orchestra. L'estro armonico pioneered orchestral unisono in concerto movements. Vivaldi composed a few concertos specifically for L'estro armonico, while other concertos of the set had been composed at an earlier date. Vivaldi scholar Michael Talbot described the set as "perhaps the most influential collection of instrumental music to appear during the whole of the eighteenth century". L'estro armonico (the harmonic inspiration) was published as Antonio Vivaldi's Op. 3 in Amsterdam in 1711. Vivaldi's Op. 1 and Op. 2 had only contained sonatas, thus L'estro armonico was his first collection of concertos appearing in print. It was also the first time Vivaldi chose a foreign publisher, Estienne Roger, instead of an Italian. Vivaldi composed a few concertos specifically for L'estro armonico, while other concertos of the set had been composed at an earlier date. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550 "The Great G Minor Symphony",
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Symphony No. 40 in G minor, K. 550, was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1788. It is sometimes referred to as the "Great G minor symphony", to distinguish it from the "Little G minor symphony", No. 25. The two are the only extant minor key symphonies Mozart wrote.
The date of completion of this symphony is known exactly, since Mozart in his mature years kept a full catalog of his completed works; he entered the 40th Symphony into it on 25 July 1788. Work on the symphony occupied an exceptionally productive period of just a few weeks during which time he also completed the 39th and 41st symphonies (26 June and 10 August, respectively). Nikolaus Harnoncourt conjectured that Mozart composed the three symphonies as a unified work, pointing, among other things, to the fact that the Symphony No. 40, as the middle work, has no introduction (unlike No. 39) and does not have a finale of the scale of No. 41's. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Viola Concerto in G Major, TWV 51:G9,
by Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)

Of Georg Philipp Telemann's surviving concertos, his Viola Concerto in G major, TWV 51:G9 is among his most famous, and still regularly performed today. It is the first known concerto for viola and was written circa 1716–1721. It consists of four movements:
Largo: A mellow movement with long notes. Written in 3/2, with many dotted quarter and eighth note slurs, and is in the key of G. Usually is played with vibrato. Some performers choose to add significant ornamentation to this very simple movement.
Allegro: Most played movement. Written in 4/4 and in the key of G. The melody begins with a distinctive syncopated figure which is also used independently later in the movement.
Andante: A slow, mellow movement in the relative minor and largely on the upper strings of the instrument.
Presto: A fast, exciting movement in the tonic key.
The fast movements contain very few slurs, and many performers' editions include slurring suggestions, often indistinguishable from markings contained in the original. The performer is encouraged to invent a varied pattern of slurs which fits the shape of each phrase.
The slow movements both give the option of a cadenza. A typical performance lasts about 14 minutes. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The String Quartet No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 59 No. 2 "2nd Razumovsky Quartet",
by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

The String Quartet No. 8 in E minor, Op. 59, No. 2, was written by Ludwig van Beethoven and published in 1808. This work is the second of three of his ".Rasumovsky". cycle of string quartets, and is a product of his ".middle". It is in four movements... According to Carl Czerny, the second movement of the quartet occurred to Beethoven as he contemplated the starry sky and thought of the music of the spheres (Thayer, Life of Beethoven); it has a hymnlike quality reminiscent of a much later devotion, the "Heiliger Dankgesang" hymn to the Divine in the Quartet Op. 132. The scherzo movement of the quartet, the third movement (allegretto), uses a Russian theme also used by Modest Mussorgsky in Boris Godunov, by Anton Arensky in his String Quartet No. 2 in A Minor, and by Sergei Rachmaninoff in his 6 Morceaux for Piano Duet, Op. 11. The original song, "Glory to the Sun", was recorded by Nikolay Lvov and Jan Prac; sheet music was published in 1790 (second edition 1806), verses in the 1770s. However, Beethoven used it in an ungentle way. According to Kerman, "It sounds as though Count Razumovsky had been tactless enough to hand Beethoven the tune, and Beethoven is pile-driving it into the ground by way of revenge." In an extremely unusual example of melodic setting prior to the 20th century, portions of the tune with strong tonic harmonic leanings are harmonized with the dominant, and vice versa; the harmonic clash is harsh, and many listeners have found this portion of the quartet to be quite amusing, especially as contrasted with the prosaic, almost "exercise-book" counterpoint which precedes it (another example of Beethoven parodying a student counterpoint exercise can be found in the scherzo of the Quartet No. 10, opus 74). (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Symphony No. 36 in C Major, K. 425 "Linz Symphony",
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Symphony No. 36 in C major, K. 425, (known as the "Linz Symphony") was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart during a stopover in the Austrian town of Linz on his and his wife's way back home to Vienna from Salzburg in late 1783. The entire symphony was written in four days to accommodate the local count's announcement, upon hearing of the Mozarts' arrival in Linz, of a concert. The première in Linz took place on 4 November 1783. The composition was also premièred in Vienna on 1 April 1784. The autograph score of the "Linz Symphony" was not preserved. [From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

The Concerto for Strings in G Minor, RV 157,
by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

The first works of the "concerto" genre were actually intended to be performed by a large instrumental ensemble (string orchestra and basso continuo) and not by groups of soloists. It is not surprising, however, that the principal violin in such a large grouping soon demanded special tasks. From this, the dialogue between tutti and solo that dominates today finally developed. An early master of this type of composition and the driving force behind its development was the Italian Antonio Vivaldi. The Concerto in G minor RV 157 is still owed to the form without a real solo voice. It begins with a powerful movement in which the two violin parts are in dialogue. A strict largo with dotted rhythm is followed by the sweeping finale, which is somewhat reminiscent of the "summer" of the "Four Seasons". (Irene Schallhorn)

The Messe solennelle de Saint-Cécile (St. Cecilia Mass)
by Charles Gounod (1818-1893)

Charles Gounod has become famous for his opera "Margarete" above all. It is hardly known that his first passion was clerical music. The "Messe solennelle de Saint-Cécile" is worth to be called the most beautiful among his numerous clerical compositions. The work is distinguished by a maze of marvellous melodies, an extremly lined-up orchestra and the harmonious interconnection of solists and choir. The first staging of the mass was in November, 22. 1855 at St. Eustache in Paris. Gounod wrote the work for the celebration of St. Cecile, who is the patroness of clerical music. With certain instinct he combined the dramatic counterparts of clerical music and motifs and melodies of the Grand Opera. The plain covering figures of the orchestra above all give a uniform mood to the sets of the mass, which manifests itself in sacral dignity.

T

he Piano Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 was composed by Robert Schumann from 1830 to 1838. It was his last full-length attempt at the sonata genre, the other completed ones being the Piano Sonata No. 1 in F sharp minor (Op. 11) and the Piano Sonata No. 3 in F minor (Op. 14); he later wrote Three Piano Sonatas for the Young Op. 118. Because it was published before the F minor sonata, it was given an earlier sequence number (No. 2) but still kept its later opus number (Op. 22). This has caused confusion, and recordings of the G minor Sonata have sometimes been published as "Sonata No. 3". There was also an earlier sonata in F minor, which Schumann abandoned; this is sometimes referred to as "Sonata No. 4". Among his sonatas, this one is very frequently performed and recorded. Because of its great variety and highly virtuosic demands, it is enjoyed both by audiences and performers alike. Clara Schumann claimed to be "endlessly looking forward to the second sonata", but nevertheless Robert revised it several times. At Clara Schumann's request, the original finale, marked Presto passionato was replaced with a less difficult movement in 1838. The Andantino of the sonata is based on Schumann's early song "Im Herbste"; Jensen describes the first movement as having "a concern with motivic structure". It is dedicated to Schumann's friend the pianist Henriette Voigt and was published in September 1839.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

T

he French Suites, BWV 812-817, are six suites which Johann Sebastian Bach wrote for the clavier (harpsichord or clavichord) between the years of 1722 and 1725. Although Suites Nos. 1 to 4 are typically dated to 1722, it is possible that the first was written somewhat earlier.The suites were later given the name "French" (first recorded usage by Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg in 1762). Likewise, the English Suites received a later appellation. The name was popularised by Bach's biographer Johann Nikolaus Forkel, who wrote in his 1802 biography of Bach, "One usually calls them French Suites because they are written in the French manner." This claim, however, is inaccurate: like Bach's other suites, they follow a largely Italian convention. There is no surviving definitive manuscript of these suites, and ornamentation varies both in type and in degree across manuscripts. The courantes of the first (in D minor) and third (in B minor) suites are in the French style, the courantes of the other four suites are all in the Italian style. In any case, Bach also employed dance movements (such as the polonaise of the sixth suite) that are foreign to the French manner. Usually, the swift second movement after the allemande is named either courante (French style) or corrente (Italian style), but in all these suites the second movements are named courante, according to the Bach catalog listing, which supports the suggestion that these suites are "French". Some of the manuscripts that have come down to us are titled "Suites Pour Le Clavecin", which is what probably led to the tradition of calling them "French" Suites.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I

n this live recording Michael Mücke plays a violin from Gaspare Lorenzini (Piacenza 1780) and Jens Peter Maintz a Violoncello from Vincenzo Rugeri (1696).

The Serenade for String Orchestra in E Minor, Op. 20, by Edward Elgar (1857-1934)

In music Edward Elgar was a "self made man", who first practiced the small form before gradually approaching the great musical genres. A milestone on this path was the extremely charming Serenade for String Orchestra Op. 20, which was composed in 1892. For this, Elgar probably fell back on a lost composition from 1888. It seems the immediate trigger for the final version of this work was the invitation of a friend to visit the "Bayreuth Festspiele". Elgar studied the creations of Richard Wagner intensively during his autodidactic studies and took up Wagner's opera "Parsifal", which left significant traces in this Serenade - the first composition with which he was fully satisfied. Apparently the publisher Novello, to whom he offered the composition, had a different opinion. Novello did not accept Elgar's offer with the reason, that this kind of music would practically unsaleable. Today this lovely three-part piece is one of the most performed works by the "Englishman", who became famous later with great compositions - not only with his best-known "Pomp & Circumstance March No. 1".

Souvenir de Florence for String Orchestra, Op. 70, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) is considered as the most important Russian composer of the 19th century. He composed 'Souvenir de Florence' in 1890, thus during his later period, and dedicated the work to the St. Petersburg Chamber Music Society in response to his appointment as an Honorary Member. Originally scored for string sextet (2 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellos), Tchaikovsky arranged the work later also for string orchestra. The title 'Memory of Florence' probably originates from the fact that the composer started working on it while visiting Florence in Italy.

The Serenade for Strings in E Major, Op. 22 / B. 52, by Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)

Antonín Dvořák's Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22 was composed in just two weeks in May 1875. It remains one of the composer's more popular orchestral works to this day. 1875 was a fruitful year for Dvořák, during which he wrote his Symphony No. 5, String Quintet No. 2, Piano Trio No. 1, the opera Vanda, and the Moravian Duets. These were happy times in his life. His marriage was young, and his first son had been born. For the first time in his life, he was being recognized as a composer and without fear of poverty. He received a generous stipend from a commission in Vienna, which allowed him to compose his Fifth Symphony and several chamber works as well as the Serenade. Dvořák is said to have written the Serenade in just 12 days, from 3-14 May. The piece was premiered in Prague on 10 December 1876 by Adolf Čech and the combined orchestras of the Czech and German theatres. It was published in 1877 in the composer's piano duet arrangement by Emanuel Starý in Prague. The score was printed two years later by Bote and Bock, Berlin. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219 "Turkish", by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219, often referred to by the nickname 'The Turkish', was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1775, premiering during the Christmas season that year in Salzburg. It follows the typical fast-slow-fast musical structure. Mozart composed the majority of his concertos for string instruments from 1773 to 1779, but it is unknown for whom, or for what occasion, he wrote them. Similarly, the dating of these works is unclear. Analysis of the handwriting, papers and watermarks has proved that all five violin concertos were re-dated several times. The year of composition of the fifth concerto "1775" was scratched out and replaced by "1780", and later changed again to "1775". Mozart would not use the key of A major for a concerto again until the Piano Concerto No. 12 (K. 414). (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The String Quartet No. 63 in B-Flat Major, Op. 76 No. 4, Hob. III:78 "Sunrise", by Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Haydn's string quartet cycle op. 76 came into being due to a common practice of the time, whereby princes, kings, merchants or high-ranking clerics would commission their subordinate court musicians to write pieces of music. Haydn received 100 ducats from Count Joseph Erdödy for the six quartets in 1797. More than two hundred years later they appear like the sum of his art within this genre that he influenced so greatly. The "Sunrise Quartet" in B flat major is the fourth quartet of the work. The name was given retrospectively and is extremely apt: in the first movement, after a few attempts, the first violin leaps from faint sounds into a resonating B major fortissimo that emerges like the rising sun.

The Piano Trio No. 6 in E-Flat Major, Op. 70 No. 2, by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Carl Czerny, composer and student of Beethoven, sayed about the Piano Trio in E-flat Major: "this trio is no less great or original than its successor (Piano Trio in D Major, Op. 70, No. 1), but it is of a very different, less serious character." The trio in e-flat major was composed during the summer of 1808 immediately after the Sixth Symphony, and applies foreseen traits to Romanticism. Beethoven expands his realm of expression here in two somewhat converse directions: both in a seemingly romantically tonal colourfulness, and towards the inclusion of classic style elements by means of a stricter introduction.

The Sonata No. 3 for Violin and Harpsichord, BWV 1016, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

The "Six Sonatas for Violin and Obbligato Harpsichord", BWV 1014 - 1019, by Johann Sebastian Bach are works in trio sonata form, with the two upper parts in the harpsichord and violin over a bass line supplied by the harpsichord and an optional viola da gamba. Unlike baroque sonatas for solo instrument and continuo, where the realisation of the figured bass was left to the discretion of the performer, the keyboard part in the sonatas was almost entirely specified by Bach. They were probably mostly composed during Bach's final years in Cöthen between 1720 and 1723, before he moved to Leipzig. The extant sources for the collection span the whole of Bach's period in Leipzig, during which time he continued to make changes to the score. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Symphony No. 29 in A Major, K. 201, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201/186a, was completed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on 6 April 1774. It is, along with Symphony No. 25, one of his better known early symphonies. Stanley Sadie characterizes it as "a landmark... personal in tone, indeed perhaps more individual in its combination of an intimate, chamber music style with a still fiery and impulsive manner." (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Sonata No. 1 in C Major for Violin, Cello & Basso continuo by Nicola Porpora (1686-1768)

Nicola Antonio Porpora (17 August 1686 - 3 March 1768) was an Italian composer and teacher of singing of the Baroque era, whose most famous singing students were the castrati Farinelli and Caffarelli. Other students included composers Matteo Capranica and Joseph Haydn. Porpora was born in Naples. He graduated from the music conservatory Poveri di Gesù Cristo of his native city, where the civic opera scene was dominated by Alessandro Scarlatti. Porpora's first opera, Agrippina, was successfully performed at the Neapolitan court in 1708. His second, Berenice, was performed at Rome. In a long career, he followed these up by many further operas, supported as maestro di cappella in the households of aristocratic patrons, such as the commander of military forces at Naples, prince Philip of Hesse-Darmstadt, or of the Portuguese ambassador at Rome, for composing operas alone did not yet make a viable career. However, his enduring fame rests chiefly upon his unequalled power of teaching singing. At the Neapolitan Conservatorio di Sant'Onofrio and with the Poveri di Gesù Cristo he trained Farinelli, Caffarelli, Salimbeni, and other celebrated vocalists, during the period 1715 to 1721. In 1720 and 1721 he wrote two serenades to libretti by a gifted young poet, Metastasio, the beginning of a long, though interrupted, collaboration. In 1722 his operatic successes encouraged him to lay down his conservatory commitments. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The String Quartet No. 14 in G Major, Op. 10 No. 1, K. 387 "Spring Quartet", by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The String Quartet No. 14 in G major, K. 387, nicknamed the "Spring" quartet, was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1782 while in Vienna. In the composer's inscription on the title page of the autograph score is stated: "li 31 di decembre 1782 in vienna". The work was perhaps edited in 1783. This is the first of the Haydn Quartets, a set of six string quartets he wrote during his first few years in Vienna in honor of the composer Joseph Haydn, who is generally viewed as the father of the string quartet form. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Symphony No. 21 in A Major, K. 134, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The Symphony No. 21 in A major, K. 134, was composed by Mozart in August 1772. The symphony has the scoring of two flutes, two horns, and strings. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

I

nside St. Mark's Basilica (San Marco), the walls and floor, where not covered by marble slabs, are decorated with mosaics resplendent with gold, hence the nickname "Golden Basilica". In total they cover more than 8000 m² and form the largest continuous mosaic surface in the world. It shows pictures of apostles and the Holy Spirit, scenes from Genesis or even the archangels Gabriel and Michael. The cathedral provided a perfect scene for two choirs mutually responding through their antiphons not only side by side but front to front. The balconies on opposing sides offered the appropriate places for this to happen, and the organs, each located on a separate balcony, created ideal conditions. The idea of placing one choir or even several partial choirs on different balconies or at different places in the basilica was an obvious solution. But also instrumental ensembles took advantage of the basilica's architecture. They sang and played alternately, responded, united in tutti passages and were thus able to fill the space with the full splendour of sound. After the sacking of Rome in 1527, Doge Andrea Gritti, who was in office from 1523 to 1538, wanted to reform Venice and make it a cultural centre for architects, painters, writers and musicians in place of Rome.

Giovanni Gabrieli became second organist subordinated to his uncle Andrea Gabrieli in 1585, after Claudio Merulo had resigned. Only one year later, after the death of his uncle in 1586, he became the principal organist of St. Mark's. As Andrea Gabrieli's nephew, Giovanni was priviliged to benefit from his uncle's knowledge and to study his works, which were already experimenting with music for more than one choir. He finally continued and refined these Trends himself. Today he is regarded as the musician who completed the Venetian School. Many of his works bear the title Canzon, such as the Canzon terza a 6, which was composed as early as 1615. Actually Canzon means song, from which it is derived. As in the vocal motet, various "soggetti" of different character are performed one after the other in imitative form in the individual voices. The sections themselves are separated from each other by clear cadenzas. The Instrumentation of the canzon is not fixed to a particular ensemble formation.

Biagio Marini, born in Brescia in 1594, was also active at St. Mark's, but not as one of the Maestri di Cappella, but from 1615 as a violinist under Claudio Monteverdi. Musically, Marini played a major role in the development of the violin and trio sonata. He was also the first to record double and triple stops and the bow vibrato. His melodies show a lyrical character and he avoids rhythmic repetitions in favor of other compositional solutions.

Cipriano de Rore was in early contact with the inner circle around Adrian Willaert and de Rore's first patrons were probably Ruberto Strozzi and Ceri Capponi. In 1563 de Rore was able to succeed Willaert at St. Mark's, who had died in December. Only one year later he gave up the post as a result of organisational failures. During his lifetime, de Rore wrote over 100 madrigals, in which tightly woven, imitative polyphony is evident, which had previously only been common in motets. Among these is the "Anchor che col partire" for eight voices, published in 1547, which became very popular and was often rearranged for voice and instrument and served as a model for parodies.

Giovanni Bassano appeared as an instrumental musician at St.Mark's in 1576. In addition to Bassano as musical director of the seminary attached to St. Mark's, Giovanni Croce as maestro di cappella and Giovanni Gabrieli as principal organist were also active at St. Mark's. Bassano himself composed, among other things, motets and concerti ecclesiastici, madrigals and songs. Adaptations, reductions and transcriptions were common at the time, so it is not surprising that Bassano also adapted de Rore's Anchor "che col partire" for eight voices.

Claudio Merulo became second organist at St. Mark's in 1557 and finally first organist in 1566. Among his compositions are mainly madrigals, motets, masses as well as stage and organ music, some of which he published himself. He is considered the most important pioneer of the toccata, which captivates with its compositional care, elegance, fantasy and expressiveness. The Toccata "prima undecimo detto quinto tuono" can be found in the collection "Toccate d'Intavolatura d'Organo", published in 1604.

Giovanni Battista Buonamente follows in the tradition of Giovanni Gabrieli and probably also of Claudio Monteverdi. He himself was probably not active at St. Mark's and many of his compositions are lost. Only the last four of his seven books of instrumental music have survived. These, however, were all published in Venice (1626, 1629, 1636 and 1637). Dario Castello called himself "Capo de musici d'Instrumenti da fiato" and "Capo di Compagnia de Instrumenti". He Held both posts at St. Mark's. In content, Castello's sonatas are characterized by the diversity of ideas and notations. Sometimes sections within a sonata are linked together by variations on a theme, but the principle of alternation and contrast is predominant.

Francesco Usper was a pupil of Andrea Gabrieli and from 1614 organist in San Salvatore. In 1622 he was appointed first organist at St. Mark's. In 1624 he became director of the Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista, where he was already active as organist in 1596. Masses, psalms and instrumental pieces appeared in print under the title "Sinfonia". In 1619 "Compositioni armoniche" with motets and ten instrumental pieces were published. Of these, two symphonies, three sonatas (including one by his nephew Gabriel Sponga), three canzonas and two capriccios exist in a copy by Albert Einstein.

L

a cheminée du roi René (The Stroll of King René), Op. 205, is a suite in seven movements for wind quintet, composed in 1939 by the French composer Darius Milhaud. It is written for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon.
The suite is an adaptation of the music that the composer wrote for Raymond Bernard's 1939 film Cavalcade d'amour. It was first performed in 1941 at Mills College, California. The screenplay by Jean Anouilh and Jean Aurenche is set in the court of René I in the fifteenth century and includes three love stories with incidental music by the composers Milhaud, Honegger and Désormière.
When Milhaud finished the piece in 1941, he sent the original score as a gift to a composer he always admired: Charles Koechlin, knowing his passion for the Medieval Music. He got an immediate answer saying: "I didn't accept last year the National Order of the Legion of Honor, but I will accept this wonderful present with great pleasure."
The castle and the court of René I, count of Provence, were situated in Aix-en-Provence, birthplace of Darius Milhaud, who was always fascinated by the history of the king, his code of chivalry and the legendary tournaments that took place at his court. Although the composer studied several musical manuscripts of the period, the writing of La cheminée du roi René shows very little evidence of this; the piece bears the characteristic hallmarks of the rest of Milhaud's music.
All the movements are very short, with an alternation between "nonchalant" and very rapid tempi: a collection of medieval miniatures. The shortest movement is less than a minute in length, while the longest is only three minutes long. This gives the impression of a single piece, in just one breath, even more so because the musical atmosphere changes so little between different movements. In all the suite lasts around thirteen minutes.
La maousinglade, a discrete sarabande with the theme taken up by the oboe, is particularly striking. The Joutes sur l'Arc is replete with renaissance ornamentation, while the hunting horn is evoked in the Chasse à Valabre. The final Madrigal, calm, restful and very neoclassical, brings the work to a melancholy close.
"La cheminée du roi René" is one of Darius Milhaud's best known works and is one of the most popular pieces of chamber music in the twentieth-century repertoire for wind quintet. The opening motif of Madrigal nocturne, performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, is used as the signature melody by Sveriges Radio P2 and BBC Radio 3 in their six-hour Through the Night programme.

From Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia

The Symphony in E-Flat Major, Op. 13 No. 1, by Carl Philipp Stamitz (1745-1801)

Carl Philipp Stamitz, who changed his given name from Karl, was a German composer of partial Czech ancestry. He was the most prominent representative of the second generation of the Mannheim School. He was the eldest son of Johann Stamitz, a violinist and composer of the early classical era. Born in Mannheim, he received lessons from his father and Christian Cannabich, his father's successor as leader of the Mannheim orchestra. As a youth, Stamitz was employed as a violinist in the court orchestra at Mannheim. In 1770, he began travelling as a virtuoso, accepting short-term engagements, but never managing to gain a permanent position. He visited a number of European cities, living for a time in Strasbourg and London. In 1794, he gave up travelling and moved with his family to Jena in central Germany, but his circumstances deteriorated and he descended into debt and poverty, dying in 1801. Papers on alchemy were found after his death. Stamitz wrote symphonies, symphonies concertantes, and concertos for clarinet, cello, flute, bassoon, basset horn, violin, viola, viola d’amore and different combinations of some of these instruments. Some of his clarinet and viola concertos are particularly admired. He also wrote duos, trios and quartets. Two operas, Der verliebte Vormund and Dardanus, are now lost. Stylistically, his music resembles that of Mozart or Haydn and is characterized by appealing melodies, although his writing for the solo instruments is not excessively virtuosic. The opening movements of his orchestral works, which are in sonata form, are generally followed by expressive and lyrical middle movements and final movements in the form of a rondo... From Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

The Flute Concerto No. 1 in G major, K. 313, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

This concerto was written in 1778. Commissioned by the Dutch flautist Ferdinand De Jean in 1777, Mozart was supposed to provide four flute quartets and three flute concertos, yet he only completed two of the three concertos, K. 313 being the first. The Andante for Flute and Orchestra K. 315 may have been written as an alternative slow movement for this concerto, but there is no extant manuscript and it is therefore difficult to ascertain Mozart's intentions clearly (this also means that current editions are based on the earliest editions rather than an autograph). The piece is scored for a standard set of orchestral strings, two oboes (which are replaced with two flutes in the Adagio movement), and two horns. (© Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The Symphony No. 21 in A major, K. 134, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

The symphony was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in August 1772 and has the scoring of two flutes, two horns, and strings... From Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Arias & Cantatas

Sarah Wegener enthrals 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. Concerts have taken her to the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Rheingau Music Festival, Konzerthaus Berlin, Tonhalle Zürich, Wiener Konzerthaus, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Casa da Música Porto and to the Bozar Brussels. The British-German soprano studied singing with Prof. Jaeger-Böhm in Stuttgart and took part in masterclasses with Dame Gwyneth Jones and Renée Morloc. She has formed a close artistic relationship with the composer Georg Friedrich Haas. She was nominated for 'Singer of the Year' by Opernwelt magazine in 2011 for her interpretation of the main role of Nadja in his opera Bluthaus, which she performed at the Schwetzinger SWR Festival, Wiener Festwochen and Staatstheater Saarbrücken. In the 2015/16 season she made her debuts at the Royal Opera House London and Deutsche Oper Berlin in his new opera Morgen und Abend. In 2014 she was also highly praised for the world premiere of Jörg Widmann's Labyrinth III at the Kölner Philharmonie with the WDR Symphony Orchestra under Emilio Pomàrico. Her repertoire includes Handel's Messiah, Mozart's Mass in C minor, Schumann's Faust Scenes, Dvorak's Stabat Mater and Strauss' Four Last Songs. Furthermore, she enjoys frequent performances with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre des Champs-Élysées/Collegium Vocale Gent, NDR Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg, Kammerorchester Basel and Radio Filharmonisch Orkest. Her discography comprises recordings with Frieder Bernius of arias by Justin Heinrich Knecht (Carus), Korngold's Die stumme Serenade (CPO) and Schubert's Lazarus (Carus), as well as Rossini's Petite Messe solennelle under Tonu Kaljuste (Carus), a CD with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra under Heinz Holliger (Hänssler Classic) and a release of Handel's Israel in Egypt with the Maulbronn Chamber Choir under Jürgen Budday (K&K Verlagsanstalt).
Founded in 1999, the ensemble il Capriccio evolved into a personally, stylistically and musically very individual ensemble. Its members, meeting up from all over middle Europe for mutual working sessions are outstanding musicians of international ensembles and professional orchestras or teachers at a conservatory. All musicians of Il Capriccio have intensively occupied themselves since their studies with historically informed performance. The usage of original instruments only constitutes the sounding foundation for an extremely meaningful and vivid way of musical interacting on stage. Il Capriccio gives concerts in variable instrumentation from the size of a baroque orchestra to the classical string quartet consisting of the principals of the ensemble. The solo part for violin plays the art director Friedemann Wezel. Additionally, Il Capriccio cooperates with important artists such as Sergio Azzolini (bassoon) or Markus Brönnimann (flute). A further and exceptional obligation considering the educational support of young artists was accepted by the 2004 founding of the "Il Capriccio Strings Academy".

The St. John Passion, BWV 245, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

The "Passio Secundum Johannem" (also known as St John Passion) is the earliest of the known Passion cantatas of J. S. Bach, among which only the St John Passion and St Matthew Passion can be said to have largely preserved their authentic character. A St Mark Passion exists only by libretto. The premiere of the first edition as presented here took place on Good Friday, 7th of April 1724, during the vespers in the church of St Nikolai in Leipzig, shortly after Bach's 39th birthday. In the following years Bach kept changing the work for subsequent staging, so his latest version dates perhaps up to 1749. As major textual basis Bach choose the passion narrative of the Gospel of John as translated by Martin Luther. It was supplemented by smaller passages of the Gospel of Matthew and some free insertions of contemplating character whose provenance remains unclear. The narrative is framed by chorals largely consisting of lyrics from well-known protestant hymns from the 16th and 17th century. The work is organized in two parts: the first tells about the betrayal of Jesus, his capture and Peter's Denial, the second part deals with the examination, trial, crucifixion and his burial. After the death of Bach in 1750, his complete works disappeared little by little from public perception and fell into oblivion, thus also his Passion cantatas. It was to the director of the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin (one of the world's oldest mixed choral ensembles), Carl Friedrich Zelter, and 20-year-old Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy to bring the St Matthew Passion to performance again after a hundred years, on the 11th of March 1829; thereby initiating a broad movement of a return to Bach's oeuvre, for example a processing of the St John Passion by Robert Schumann in 1851, who described it as "much more venturous, powerful, and poetic than the one after St Matthew […] thoroughly genius, and with great artistry". Today, St John Passion ranks among the central works of European musical history. (Translation by Anna Maria Kindler)
This live recording of Bach's "St. John Passion" is part of a cycle of oratorios, masses and other grand works, performed in the basilica of Maulbronn Abbey under the direction of Jürgen Budday. The series combines authentically performed oratorios and masses with the optimal acoustics and atmosphere of this unique monastic church. This ideal location demands the transparency of playing and the interpretive unveiling of the rhetoric intimations of the composition, which is especially aided by the historically informed performance. The music is exclusively performed on reconstructed historical instruments, tuned in the pitch, which was customary during the composer's lifetime (this performance is tuned in a' = 415 Hz).

The Chamber Piano Concertos Nos. 11 & 12 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

"The concertos are just the medium between being too heavy and too light - they are very brilliant - pleasant to hear - certainly without falling into the void - here and there it is possible for the connoisseur alone to get satisfaction - but such - that the laymen can be contented without knowing why." (Mozart about the three concertos for piano K. 413, K. 414 and K. 415 in a letter to his father on December 28th, 1782) - "I have to write in great haste, as it is already half past six, and for six o'clock I have ordered some people for making a little music; (...) now, two concertos are still missing for the Suscription Concertos." (Mozart in a letter to his father on December 28th, 1782) - Having provided us with magnificent examples of concertos for stringed and wind instruments, Mozart reaches the ideal conception of a concerto with his piano concertos. They are the high point and peak of his instrumental producing. In Mozart's piano concertos two equal forces are facing each other that are really able to compete. They are therefore essentially his very unique creation. The piano concertos K. 413 - 415 and K. 449 were the first in a row of 17 momentous concertos created in Vienna and consequently founding his fame as virtuoso to the Viennese audience. The double possibility given to the performance, of either playing full orchestra, with oboe and horn (in the C-Major also with timpani and trumpet) or just with string quartet shows the flexibility he wanted to produce. The piano concertos by Mozart never seem to touch the border of the socially appropriate - how could it, being designed to be acclaimed. But even so, it opens the doors to tell about the dark and the bright, the serious and the cheerful, the deepest - to lead its audience to a higher level of knowledge. The audience that is to deal with Mozart's piano concertos is the best there is. (Christoph Soldan)

The Concerto for Two Violins, Strings and Continuo in D minor, BWV 1043, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

This concerto, also known as the Double Violin Concerto, is perhaps one of the most famous works by Johann Sebastian Bach and considered among the best examples of the work of the late Baroque period. Bach may have written it between 1717 and 1723 when he was the Kapellmeister at the court of Anhalt-Köthen, Germany, though the work's performance materials for the Ordinaire Concerten that Bach ran as the Director of the Collegium Musicum in Leipzig are dated c. 1730–31. Later in 1739, in Leipzig, he created an arrangement for two harpsichords, transposed into C minor, BWV 1062. In addition to the two soloists, the concerto is scored for strings and basso continuo. The concerto is characterized by the subtle yet expressive relationship between the violins throughout the work. The musical structure of this piece uses fugal imitation and much counterpoint... From Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

"L'estro armonico" by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

Antonio Vivaldi's "L'estro armonico" (the harmonic inspiration), Op. 3, is a set of 12 concertos for stringed instruments, first published in Amsterdam in 1711. Vivaldi's Twelve Trio Sonatas, Op. 1, and Twelve Violin Sonatas, Op. 2, only contained sonatas, thus L'estro armonico was his first collection of concertos appearing in print. It was also the first time he chose a foreign publisher, Estienne Roger, instead of an Italian. Each concerto was printed in eight parts: four violins, two violas, cello and continuo. The continuo part was printed as a figured bass for violone and harpsichord. The concertos belong to the concerto a 7 format, that is: for each concerto there are seven independent parts. In each consecutive group of three concertos, the first is a concerto for four violins, the second for two violins, and the third a solo violin concerto. The cello gets solistic passages in several of the concertos for four and two violins, so that a few of the concertos conform to the traditional Roman concerto grosso format where a concertino of two violins and cello plays in contrast to a string orchestra. L'estro armonico pioneered orchestral unisono in concerto movements. Vivaldi composed a few concertos specifically for L'estro armonico, while other concertos of the set had been composed at an earlier date. Vivaldi scholar Michael Talbot described the set as "perhaps the most influential collection of instrumental music to appear during the whole of the eighteenth century". L'estro armonico (the harmonic inspiration) was published as Antonio Vivaldi's Op. 3 in Amsterdam in 1711. Vivaldi's Op. 1 and Op. 2 had only contained sonatas, thus L'estro armonico was his first collection of concertos appearing in print. It was also the first time Vivaldi chose a foreign publisher, Estienne Roger, instead of an Italian. Vivaldi composed a few concertos specifically for L'estro armonico, while other concertos of the set had been composed at an earlier date... From Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

The Last Judgement, WoO 61, by Louis Spohr (1784-1859)

During his lifetime, Louis Spohr, born on April 5th 1784 in Braunschweig (Germany), was named as one of the greatest violinists beside Niccolò Paganini. Unlike many of his contemporaries, whose works are celebrated today, Louis Spohr was already famous during his lifetime and he was considered as one of the great artists of his era, as a musician and conductor and, in fact, as a composer. His rich oeuvre includes more than 200 works, including chamber music, concertos, symphonies, several operas and four oratorios. "The Last Judgement" (in German: Die letzten Dinge) was Louis Spohr's second oratorio and one of his most famous compositions these times. A contemporary reviewer discribed the oratorio as "one of the greatest musical creations of the age." "The Last Judgement" is originated in Kassel between 1825 and 1826, where Spohr has appointed as Music Director after a successful artist career. Spohr himself wrote about the successful premiere, which took place in Kassel on Holy Friday 1826 in a darkened choir under a cross, illuminated by 600-glass lamps: "I must say to myself - the effect was extraordinary! Before that I never had those emotion of satisfaction during the performance of one of my larger works!". Although this oratorio isn't well known today, the sucess of "The Last Judgement" is documented with numerous other performances during the first half of the 19th century. The libretto for "The Last Judgement" is written by the dramatist and music writer Johann Friedrich Rochlitz (1769-1842). The oratorio describes in two parts the scares of the Apocalypse and of the Last Judgement ("Babylon the great is fallen"), based on the Book of Revelation from the New Testament. At the end of the fight between God and the Devil a new heaven and a new earth replace the old. A new "city" is born: the New Jerusalem.

"The Period of Time" ~ Songs, Arias and instrumental Music from the 17th and 18th Century

The philosophical thoughts about hope and future, the waiting and the transiency and about the terrifying idea of eternity in the works of northern and central German composers of the 17th and 18th century. (Central Idea: Simone Eckert)

"The Night shines as the Day"

A Choral Concert, performed by the Maulbronn Chamber Choir, with works by Jacobus Handl-Gallus, Leonhard Lechner, Jan Pieterszon Sweelinck, Moritz Hauptmann, Felix Mendelssohn, Otto Nicolai, Johannes Brahms, Knut Nysted, Sven David Sandström, Wolfram Buchenberg & Eric Whitacre.

Souvenir de Florence for String Orchestra, Op. 70, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) is considered as the most important Russian composer of the 19th century. He composed "Souvenir de Florence" in 1890, thus during his later period, and dedicated the work to the St. Petersburg Chamber Music Society in response to his appointment as an Honorary Member. Originally scored for string sextet (2 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellos), Tchaikovsky arranged the work later also for string orchestra. The title "Memory of Florence" probably originates from the fact that the composer started working on it while visiting Florence in Italy.

The Concerto for Cor Anglais & String Orchestra by Allan Stephenson (born 1949)

Prooving that contemporary works aren't bound to be dissonant is the "Concerto for English horn and string orchestra" by the English cellist, conductor and composer Allan Stephenson. Born in 1949 near Liverpool, England, he studied first cello in Manchester, then moved to Cape Town (South Africa) in 1973. Besides his career as musician and conductor (over the years, he conducted all major symphony orchestras of South Africa) he wrote three operas, symphonic music and concertos for almost all orchestral instruments. Stylistically, his compositions are Late English Romantic school, whereat Modern rhythms and harmonies too take place in his music. Stephenson's credo, music to be due to entertain or please the audience, becomes evident at all times. The "Concert for Engish horn and string orchestra" includes three movements: a slowly introducting first movement, a traditionally sounding, intimate and highly Romantic second movement and a fast finale. The music, being composed in the style of Late English Romantic, allows consistently associations towards film scores. You hear the world premiere of this work from July 9th 2010 at the minster of Maulbronn.

Grand Piano Masters ~ Dreamscenes

"Through evening's shade, the pale moon gleams - While rapt in love's ecstatic dreams - Two hearts are fondly beating", quoted Johannes Brahms above the notes for the "Andante" in the Piano Sonata No.3. This excerpt of a poem by C.O. Sternau (a pseudonym of Otto Inkermann) characterizes the mood of this piece, which had a large contribution to the fame of the young composer. Written in 1853 this "poetic" sonata marks the end of a cycle of three sonatas. Likewise it was the last tune the 20-year-old composer submitted to Robert Schumann for commentary. Robert Schumann himself described Brahms in an article titled "Neue Bahnen" (New Paths) in October 1853 as "a man with a calling" who was "destined to give ideal expression to the times". Accordingly Magdalena Müllerperth has prepended of the Brahms-Sonata, which filled the second part of her recital in the lay refectory of Maulbronn monastery on June 4th 2011, a creation of significance for the compositions of the romantic era: the cycle "Fantasy Pieces" for Piano Opus 12 by Robert Schumann. Inspired by a collection of novellas by E.T.A. Hoffmann, called "Fantasiestücke in Callots Manier", it seems that Schumann had the characters "Florestan" and "Eusebius" in mind - two characters he created for representing the duality of his personality: Eusebius depicts the dreamer and Florestan represents Schumann's passionate side. The virtual dialogue between both characters during the movements ends in the piece "End of the Song", which Schumann has described in a letter to his wife Clara: "Well in the end it all resolves itself into a wedding...". Before these literary-inspired compositions full of poetic pictures and dream scenes by Schumann and Brahms, Magdalena Müllerperth introduced the concert with five dances by one of her personally favourite composers Frédéric Chopin, in continuation to her first published recital which included Chopin's "Impromptus No.I-III" and the "Fantaisie-Impromptu" Op.66 (released as a part of the CD "Comme un jeux d'eau", No.: KuK 16). Chopin's "Mazurkas" - he wrote at least 69 Mazurkas - are based on a traditional Polish folk dance in triple meter with an accent on the third or on the second beat, called "Mazurek". Chopin started composing his mazurkas in 1825, and continued composing them until 1849, the year of his death. With "Dreamscenes" you listen to Magdalena Müllerperth's second piano recital, which is documented on disc.

A German Requiem, Op. 45, by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

On Good Friday, April the 10th, 1868, the world premiere of the Requiem in a six movements version was given in Bremen, Germany. Brahms himself conducted the Choral Society of Bremen, having carefully been prepared by Karl Martin Reinthaler to perfom the new release. Friends of Brahms from all over Germany were attending this occasion. Clara Schumann noted in her diary: '... This requiem deeply moved me like no other sacred music... As I saw Johannes standing there with the baton in his hand, I always had to think of my dear Robert's prophecy - let him just take the magic wand, and let him operate with an orchestra and a choir - that is fulfilling today. The baton really transformed into a magic wand and vanquished Everybody, even his most determined enemies. This was such blissfulness for me, I haven't felt so delighted in years. After the performance was a supper at the Rathskeller, where everybody jubliated - it was a celebration of music.' After the performance in Bremen, Brahms returned to Hamburg, where he finished the work by the addition of the movement. 'You now have sadness' that was finished in the autograph of the particell with 'Hamburg May 68'. In 1869 eventually, the complete opus was performed at the 18th of February in Leipzig under the direction of Karl Reinecke. Eduard Bernsdorf, the critic of the journal 'Signals of the musical world', who ten years earlier had called the piano concerto in d-minor a piece of 'bleakly waste and drought', nowhad no choice but to acknowledge in his critique on February the 22th, 1869: '... you so have to number the questionable work of Brahms among the most important doings having been accomplished by our younger and youngest generation of composers, as well as you have to designate it the most important of the Brahmsian creations. Above all, an aspiration for the Grand and Noble does announce itself here and, coherring, the complete negation of the Ordinary and Banal...' Johannes Brahms himself produced a four-handed version of his German Requiem for piano that was publicized first in London in 1871. The publication of simplified musical versions for piano duo was common in the 19th century, being in some respects the precursor of acoustical recording because it allowed musical amateurs to experience great works outside the concert hall by their own performance on the piano. Brahms worked on this version himself, i.a. out of the conviction that if it really had to happen, he would be the best candidate for this duty. All in all, he considered this work as unworthy, but necessary, thus he refused noting his name as arranger on the front page, and as it happened anyhow, he ordered the exemples already printed to be recollected and added with new front pages not naming him as arranger any longer. In a letter Brahms stated ironically: 'I dedicated myself to the noble occupation of rendering my immortal creation enjoyable also for the four-handed soul. Now it can't decline.'. Even if it obviously didn't answered the Maestro's basic idea, the piano version gives considerably more room for dynamics and therefore serves the tension of the work. Prior condition is a choir and a conductor that see an opportunity and even are challengend by the minimalism of the instrumentation in filling these deep moments with all the tension human voice is capable of. The vocal performance is enriched by the convertion of the piano version by Brahms himself, because he in person decided on the atmospheric form of his presentation. It is quite exciting to hear the chamber choir merge into word and work and having the courage of dedicating itself to the Requiem's spirit.