Immerseel

The music of Johann Strauss reflects a lifestyle, a refinement … a true Viennese tradition. At the same time, this music simply creates joie de vivre, an almost uncontrollable urge to dance. It is these feelings and these emotions Anima Eterna and its leader, Jos van Immerseel communicate with delicacy and conviction; also with a view to the greatest possible proximity to the score as it was conceived at the time of its creation.

Ein Garant für spannende Aufnahmen mit hohem Authentizitätsfaktor sind Anima Eterna und Jos van Immerseel. Fern von effekthascherischen Äußerlichkeiten präsentiert Immerseel ein durchweg erfrischendes Hörerlebnis, dem man sich gerne hingibt.

Ludwig van Beethoven - Die Sonates für Klavier und Violine - Jaap Schröder, Jos van Immerseel
Romantic | Ape + cue | no log | Covers | 3 CD | 342 MB | RS
DHM CDS 7491442 | 1988

Two ripe musicians, meet around Beethoven and good performance. Introductions followed by expressive passages, Dialogues, reprises, exchange of thoughts, soft ends, lots of Rubato, Accentuato and many very nice music are all about these two sonatas. Immerseel and Schroder are great.

In 1996 and 1997, Anima Eterna Brugge played and recorded Schubert’s complete symphonies in the particularly innovative interpretation of their conductor, Jos van Immerseel. This interpretation, based on the study of Schubert’s manuscripts and on the instruments used at the time of their first performance, showcases sound colors combining freshness and profundity. Upon its initial release, this series of 4 CDs was recognized internationally as a new reference.

The music of Johann Strauss reflects an elegance and refinement typical of Vienna. It inspires us with a joie de vivre and an almost irresistible urge to dance. The ensemble Anima Eterna Brugge and its conductor, Jos van Immerseel, invite us to spend a delightful moment in Strauss’s company and theirs, with delicacy and feeling, conviction and emotion. Keeping as close as possible to the original score, they enable us to hear these pieces as they were intended by the composer.

This CD is probably unique. The oboe was relegated in the romantic age as the clarinet gained favour. So there are few chamber works for oboe from this period, and those that exist are rarely recorded. But to have several of these pieces on one disc and played so well on period instruments makes this a real treat. The instruments are an 1850 Triebert oboe and Erard pianoforte. These are not so different technically from their modern counterparts, but in these musicians' hands they deliver a warm, distinctive sound that would be hard to emulate with modern instruments.

Anima Eterna Brugge, founded by Jos Van Immerseel in 1987, is a period-instrument orchestra based in Bruges. The size of the ensemble varies from seven to eighty musicians, depending on the programme. Its repertory ranges from Monteverdi to Gershwin.

Schubert's quintet (which gets its name from his song "The Trout," used for a set of variations at its apex) is as lighthearted as it is melodious, qualities reflected in this excellent performance. The period-instrument balances are ideal; the fortepiano, less resonant than a modern piano, does not overpower the strings. The arpeggione was an odd, newly invented six-stringed instrument when Schubert wrote for it. The lovely sonata is here played on an obsolete five-stringed instrument, the violoncello piccolo–closer to the original than the modern cello or viola usually heard on recordings. The "Notturno" is a haunting movement, probably intended for a larger work.