Claudia Lux

Mozart was an avowed Freemason, and his connection to the order became integrated with his compositional output. In 1785 he composed the Maurerische Trauermusik (Masonic Funeral Music). It was written in honor of two deceased brethren Franz, Count Esterhazy de Galantha and Georg August, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Mozart associated certain musical motifs with Masonic ideas. The rising interval of the major sixth and various rhythmic embodiments of Masonic ritual knocks were among the elements he used as musical symbols. Although the Requiem is not specifically Masonic in nature, there are aspects present including some of these musical motifs. This 1991 recording bears the signature of Jordi Savall s talent as a conductor the intensity of emotion, clarity of structure and the emphasis on singing musical lines. This new multichannel re-mastering sheds new light on a true gem of the back catalog.

Blank & Jones present Chilltronica series.
Blank & Jones, Bliss, Michael Rother, Depeche Mode, Antonymes, Moby, Harold Budd, Brian Eno, The Cure and many more.

The repertoire choices here seem curiously conservative, considering the course of Jordi Savall's career in recent years. The answer to that conundrum lies in the date of recording – 1991. Back then, Savall was a much more mainstream kind of period performance performer, so a disc of Mozart's Requiem would have seemed like a logical choice for him, especially given that the year marked the bicentenary of the composer's death.