Mendelssohn: Elias

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 1809 – 4 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonies, concertos, piano music, organ music and chamber music. His best-known works include the overture and incidental music for A Midsummer Night's Dream, the Italian Symphony, the Scottish Symphony, the oratorio St. Paul, the oratorio Elijah, the overture The Hebrides, the mature Violin Concerto and the String Octet. The melody for the Christmas carol "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is also his. Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words are his most famous solo piano compositions.

GRAMOPHONE Magazine Editor's Choice - February 2016. The Cecilia String Quartet's performances have been hailed as “powerful” (Chicago Sun- Times) and their Analekta albums were acclaimed for their “deeply felt imperativeness” (The Strad), and applauded for “unleashing the music’s ecstasy and angst” (Gramophone Magazine). For this new recording, the CSQ chose to record two of the three quartets of Felix Mendelssohn's Op. 44, which are the centrepiece of his mature string quartets. He wrote them in the years 1837-38, starting composition at the age of 28, when his fame in the international musical community was rapidly growing. Elegant and irresistible!

Das Bayerische Staatsorchester sieht seine Wurzeln im Jahr 1523 mit der Anstellung des Sänger-Komponisten Ludwig Senfl, der von Herzog Wilhelm IV. aus der 1520 von Karl V. aufgelösten Hofkapelle Kaiser Maximilians I. zusammen mit anderen Musikern übernommen wurde.

Das Bayerische Staatsorchester sieht seine Wurzeln im Jahr 1523 mit der Anstellung des Sänger-Komponisten Ludwig Senfl, der von Herzog Wilhelm IV. aus der 1520 von Karl V. aufgelösten Hofkapelle Kaiser Maximilians I. zusammen mit anderen Musikern übernommen wurde.

The Munich Radio Orchestra (German: Münchener Rundfunkorchester) is associated with Germany's Bavarian Radio public broadcaster, but should not be confused with the network's other orchestra, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks), which is devoted to mainstream symphonic repertory. The Munich Radio Orchestra has specialized in light music, adding forays into Italian opera, contemporary sacred music, and even – in its frequent concerts in Munich – jazz and video game music, the latter perhaps designed for the orchestra's extensive youth activities.

Established in 1952, the Munich Radio Orchestra has developed into a body engaged in a wide spectrum of musical activity. There have been gala concerts and opera concert performances in particular, under the direction of Marcello Viotti, as well as a Paradisi Gloria series devoted to the sacred music of the 20th century, concerts for children and young people, and theme evenings.

At the heart of Beethoven’s life’s statement as a composer lies the cycle of sixteen string quartets, which, to this day, has retained a special status and reverence. Since 2012, the Elias String Quartet has been immersed in its Beethoven Project, performing all Beethoven’s string quartets at venues throughout the UK. In this live recording, the ensemble captures both the intimacy and grandeur of the works. With an ever-expanding recording catalogue that has been met with widespread critical acclaim, the quartet is delighted to release this disc, the first volume of its complete Beethoven cycle to be recorded live at Wigmore Hall over the coming Seasons.