Schütz Symphonae

Brahms had already decided to retire as a composer when, on a journey to Meiningen in 1891, he was inspired and challenged by clarinettist Richard Mühlfeld’s beautiful playing. The two Sonatas, Op. 120 are part of a late flowering that resulted in some of Brahms’s finest chamber music. Brahms himself explored these pieces beyond the clarinet, and Karl-Heinz Schütz’s arrangements are based on the composer’s own alternative versions, seeking out the ideal of two equally matched instruments in constant dialogue. Also included is a selection of ‘songs without words’, further expanding the flute repertoire with arrangements of these much-loved Lieder.

The Psalms of David were Schütz' first published collection 1619 after becoming the Choirmaster of the Duke of Saxony. Composed over a number of years, they blend Venetian inspired polychorality with the German of Luther's Bible translation. Throughout, particular attention is evident in the wordsetting, the meaning of the text as exemplified by the music was a driving force for Schütz throughout his creative life. Texts employed are mainly psalms or psalmselections, with a few other biblical excerpts.

The first complete recording of works by Heinrich Schütz with the Dresdner Kammerchor under Hans-Christoph Rademann has set artistic and editorial benchmarks. The first eight instalments of the complete recording, containing among others the Geistliche Chor-Music 1648, the Italian Madrigals and the Psalms of David, are now being released in an 11 CD boxed set. The recordings have been supplemented with an Arthaus film entitled Heinrich Schütz. Der Vater der deutschen Musik which is a documentary by Jörg Kobel, with the assistance of Hans-Christoph Rademann, about the life and work of Heinrich Schütz.

The first part of the Heinrich Schütz Complete Recording with the Dresdner Kammerchor under Hans-Christoph Rademann has set new artistic and editorial standards. Now the second of three box sets is being released. It encompasses Volumes 9 to 14 of the Complete Recording, including the St John Passion. This work, representative of the high standard of the whole series, was awarded the German Record Critics’ Award in 2016. Once again, top performers such as Hille Perl, Lee Santana, Dorothee Mields, Harry van der Kamp, and many others join the ensemble.

The Heinrich Schütz Complete Recording with the Dresdner Kammerchor under Hans-Christoph Rademann has set new artistic and editorial standards. Now the third of three box sets is being released. It encompasses Volumes 15 to 20 of the Complete Recording. A worthy conclusion to this award-winning series.

1611: After two years of study with Gabrieli in Venice, Heinrich Schütz tried his hand at composing madrigals on Italian poems. This mere ‘graduation exercise’ turned out to be a masterpiece: the young German composer demonstrated his ability to identify each nuance of the text with a different musical emotion, a refinement heightened here by the interpretation of Les Arts Florissants.

The Psalms of David were Schütz' first published collection 1619 after becoming the Choirmaster of the Duke of Saxony. Composed over a number of years, they blend Venetian inspired polychorality with the German of Luther's Bible translation. Throughout, particular attention is evident in the wordsetting, the meaning of the text as exemplified by the music was a driving force for Schütz throughout his creative life. Texts employed are mainly psalms or psalmselections, with a few other biblical excerpts.

To visit the great Venetian cathedrals in the 17th century was to bow deeply to the polychoral or “cori spezzati” style that reigned there, pioneered by Giovanni Gabrieli. The young Heinrich Schutz was no exception. Unable to resist the sparkling sounds arising from polychoral writing and antiphonal placement, Schutz carried the style back to his native Germany. Capella Murensis and Les Cornets Noirs here present with absolute fidelity works by Schutz and Gabrieli that epitomize the high Ventian style.