SKU: CA.2302007

ISBN M-007-24884-0. German/English. Text: Franz Xaver Huber.

In his Passion oratorio Christus am Olberge [The Mount of Olives], Beethoven succeeded firstly in building on the 18th century tradition, and secondly in putting his own personal stamp on the nascent genre of German-language oratorio - the Vienna performances of Haydn's Die Schopfung and Die Jahreszeiten had only taken place a few years earlier. In composing the work he looked towards contemporary opera, using a text by an opera librettist to depict in music the dramatic situation of the doubting Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and his arrest. Yet we do not do justice to Beethoven's work if we simply regard it as a successor work to Graun's Der Tod Jesu or even Bach's St Matthew Passion. Beethoven's Christus am Olberge is characterized less by religious devotion and much more by the dramatic realization of a specific situation in the Passion story in deeply-felt musical scenes. With its magnificent, almost operatic music, this is a different Passion oratorio which is definitely worth hearing and experiencing - and in this form it is without doubt unique in the history of vocal-instrumental sacred music. The edition follows the first printed edition in music and text; differences in the text in the libretto originally set by Beethoven are given as a second text, and a singable English translation is underlaid. Score available separately - see item CA.2302000.

SKU: CA.5165203

ISBN 9790007294243. Key: D minor. Latin.

The English conductor and composer Howard Arman has presented us with a completed version of Mozartâ??s Requiem. â??Another one?â? you might ask, since this publication is only the latest in a long line reaching back to the traditional SüÃ?mayr version. Yet such is the enormous power of Mozartâ??s score that the challenge and appeal of completing it remain undiminished. After two decades of intensive study, Howard Armanâ??s additions to Mozartâ??s great original show the requisite care and respect while incorporating many new insights.

Armanâ??s approach is particularly fruitful. Always aware of the appropriate limits to such re-creative work, he orients himself towards the typical characteristics of Mozartâ??s brilliant composing style: The masterly compositional technique, the search for innovative solutions to every problem, and even the terse treatment of the text with extremely suggestive harmonies. All of this leads to a number of new listening experiences. In the Tuba mirum, for example, we enjoy a warm, cohesive ensemble sound, supported by the bassoons, which depart from the bass line. The Confutatis presents a quite different picture: Even the basset horns are drawn down into the infernal depths. This effect is reinforced by the independence of the trombones; rather than simply following the choral parts, the instrumentâ??s unique sound is given an opportunity to shine. Armanâ??s Lacrimosa achieves a lively Mozartian feel by granting the voices considerable freedom rather than following a rigid pattern. And he concludes the movement with a fugal Amen, whereby the focus is not so much on the counterpoint itself, but rather â?? in the spirit of Mozart â?? on creating a sense of drama and illuminating the theme in all its possible facets. Mozartâ??s fragment ends with the Hostias, and so does Armanâ??s completion.

For the four following movements (Sanctus to Communio) we have nothing from Mozart, and so here, where the master is silent, Arman finally returns to Sü�mayr, the man who was closest to Mozart at the time of his death and whose efforts to fill the blank manuscripts still garner our respect today.

Armanâ??s version has already proven its practical value. The premiere with the Bavarian Radio Choir was enthusiastically received by audiences and press alike â?? and celebrated as offering a scholarly, entirely fresh perspective on Mozartâ??s masterpiece.

- World premiere by the Bavarian Radio Choir
- Enthusiastically received by audience and press.

SKU: CA.1025009

ISBN 9790007329815. Key: D major. English.

“Hail! bright Cecilia, hail to thee. Great patroness of us and harmony!” – this exclamation opens the final chorus of Henry Purcell’s eponymous Ode to St. Cecilia from 1692. A paean to the power of music, the work is one of the undoubted masterpieces of English choral odes of that time.

A resolution of the Musical Society of London in 1683 launched the great tradition of annual celebrations for St. Cecilia’s Day (November 22), featuring a church service followed by performances of specially composed music. Over the years, Purcell wrote several odes for the occasion, of which this example from 1692 is one of the most popular. Four decades later, Handel would also contribute to the celebrations with his Alexander’s Feast, HWV 75 (Carus 55.075), and his Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day, HWV 76 (Carus 55.076).

Purcell’s magnificent music, which features a huge range of tonal color and form, offers delightful parts for a variety of solo, ensemble, and choral settings. With its richly expressive palette, the Ode to St. Cecilia is an extremely rewarding work by the “Orpheus Britannicus”, as Purcell was admiringly called by contemporaries.

- Festive, rousing ode to music
- Highlight of the choral ode genre in the 17th century
. Score and parts available separately - see item CA.1025000.

SKU: CA.1025049

ISBN 9790007329808. Key: D major. English.

“Hail! bright Cecilia, hail to thee. Great patroness of us and harmony!” – this exclamation opens the final chorus of Henry Purcell’s eponymous Ode to St. Cecilia from 1692. A paean to the power of music, the work is one of the undoubted masterpieces of English choral odes of that time.

A resolution of the Musical Society of London in 1683 launched the great tradition of annual celebrations for St. Cecilia’s Day (November 22), featuring a church service followed by performances of specially composed music. Over the years, Purcell wrote several odes for the occasion, of which this example from 1692 is one of the most popular. Four decades later, Handel would also contribute to the celebrations with his Alexander’s Feast, HWV 75 (Carus 55.075), and his Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day, HWV 76 (Carus 55.076).

Purcell’s magnificent music, which features a huge range of tonal color and form, offers delightful parts for a variety of solo, ensemble, and choral settings. With its richly expressive palette, the Ode to St. Cecilia is an extremely rewarding work by the “Orpheus Britannicus”, as Purcell was admiringly called by contemporaries.

- Festive, rousing ode to music
- Highlight of the choral ode genre in the 17th century
. Score and part available separately - see item CA.1025000.

SKU: CA.1025005

ISBN 9790007251840. Key: D major. English.

“Hail! bright Cecilia, hail to thee. Great patroness of us and harmony!” – this exclamation opens the final chorus of Henry Purcell’s eponymous Ode to St. Cecilia from 1692. A paean to the power of music, the work is one of the undoubted masterpieces of English choral odes of that time.

A resolution of the Musical Society of London in 1683 launched the great tradition of annual celebrations for St. Cecilia’s Day (November 22), featuring a church service followed by performances of specially composed music. Over the years, Purcell wrote several odes for the occasion, of which this example from 1692 is one of the most popular. Four decades later, Handel would also contribute to the celebrations with his Alexander’s Feast, HWV 75 (Carus 55.075), and his Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day, HWV 76 (Carus 55.076).

Purcell’s magnificent music, which features a huge range of tonal color and form, offers delightful parts for a variety of solo, ensemble, and choral settings. With its richly expressive palette, the Ode to St. Cecilia is an extremely rewarding work by the “Orpheus Britannicus”, as Purcell was admiringly called by contemporaries.

- Festive, rousing ode to music
- Highlight of the choral ode genre in the 17th century
. Score available separately - see item CA.1025000.