1810 saw the births not only of Frédéric Chopin and Robert Schumann, but also of Norbert Burgmüller and Ludwig Schuncke. All four composers knew and valued each other as artists and as friends. While in later life Schumann and Chopin would go on to achiev e world fame with their works, Norbert Burgmüller and Ludwig Schuncke died young, leaving behind only a small body of works hardly known today. This recording brings together early works by Chopin and Schumann with selected virtuosic pieces by Burgmüller a nd Schuncke. All the works represent an energetic expression of these four geniuses, still youthful and seeking orientation, yet already manifestly inspired due to their precociousness.
Göteborg Baroque is pleased to announce the release of Johan Helmich Roman’s Then Svenska Messan, one of the most significant and beloved works in Swedish music history. Roman was a pioneer who was far ahead of his time, and today we see him as the founder of our modern musical culture. Göteborg Baroque has received accolades for its rigorous study and expressive presentation of older music in a way that makes it engaging for an audience today. With this recording, we are proud to be able to introduce this important work to an international audience.
Foremost among Swedish Baroque composers, Johan Helmich Roman travelled to England (1716-21) then to France, Italy, Austria and Germany (1735-37), gaining valuable firsthand knowledge of European music. At home in Stockholm he conducted the court orchestra, introduced Handel’s music, and was active in developing public concert life. His rich output includes these twelve charming and highly accomplished Flute Sonatas, the first such published in Sweden, whose galant character combines the baroque and emerging pre-classical styles.
Bass-baritone Adam Plachetka presents Molieri, a programme of opera arias by Mozart and Salieri, together with the Czech Ensemble Baroque under the baton of Roman Válek. Thanks to fictional works such as the film Amadeus, Antonio Salieri is often scapegoated as the man who allegedly caused Mozart’s untimely death out of professional envy. Despite the fact that this is obviously not true, Salieri’s popularity has suffered from this popular myth-making, and most of his operas have sunk into oblivion. Molieri brings the two composers together, focusing on bass-8 baritone arias from their opera buffas. Famous arias from Mozart’s Da Ponte operas are heard in a completely different light when paired to excerpts from Salieri’s Falstaff, Axur, La grotto di Trofonio and La scuola de’ gelosi. It also makes clear why Salieri enjoyed such success, as well as why great composers such as Beethoven, Schubert and Liszt all wanted to study with him. Given the importance of Prague for Mozart’s operatic successes, the music fits the players of Czech Ensemble Baroque like a glove, and Plachetka possesses the optimal combination of vocal authority and agility to sing these buffo roles.