Contents
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Composer
Ludwig van Beethoven
| 1770-1827Ludwig van Beethoven was without doubt one of the most influential composers in the history of music. His works formed the culmination of many genres – particularly instrumental – of Viennese classicism, and laid the foundation for the following decades. But Beethoven’s vocal works set standards too: the late Missa Solemnis is one of the most impressive choral works of its time; but his earlier Mass in C also opens up new worlds of expression for the liturgical text, and set the benchmark for the further development in the composition of the mass. And with the final chorus of the Ninth Symphony, the setting of Schiller’s Ode to Joy, Beethoven created one of the most frequently-performed and best known choral pieces of all, writing a timeless musical memorial to himself. Personal details
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Preface writer
Ernst Herttrich
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Choir
Kammerchor Stuttgart
The Kammerchor Stuttgart is regarded as one of the best ensembles of its kind. Over its fifty-year existence, Frieder Bernius has developed the choir into an exceptional ensemble acclaimed by audiences and press alike. This has led to invitations for the choir to perform at all the important European festivals. In Germany the chamber choir performs at festivals and in concert halls in repertoire ranging from the 17th to the 21st century. Frieder Bernius and his ensemble have received numerous accolades for their contribution to new music. The Kammerchor Stuttgart has made over 80 CDs and LPs, numerous of which have been awarded international recording prizes (including the Edison award, Diapason d’or, Gramophone Choice, Classical Internet Award, International Classical Music Award, and German Record Critics’ Award prizes). The International Federation for Choral Music has invited the ensemble to sing at the 1st, 4th and 10th World Symposia on Choral Music in Vienna, Sydney and Seoul. Regular tours of North America and Asia since 1988 and a South America tour reflect the Kammerchor Stuttgart’s international reputation. Since 1984 the top ensemble has also been invited to Israel biennially. Personal details
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Orchestra
Hofkapelle Stuttgart
The Hofkapelle Stuttgart, founded in 2006 by Frieder Bernius to complement the Barockorchester Stuttgart, concentrates on repertoire from the 19th century performed on authentic instruments. One of its main focusses is the rediscovery of music-historical treasures, particularly works from the south-west German region (by composers such as Kalliwoda, Knecht and Holzbauer). The Hofkapelle and Barockorchester Stuttgart regularly perform at international festivals (Rome, Salzburg, Göttingen, Dresden, etc.). CDs made by both groups have received many awards: the Missa Dei Patris by Jan Dismas Zelenka was nominated for the Cannes Classical Award, and the Incidental Music to Shakespeare’s Ein Sommernachtstraum [A Midsummer Night’s Dream] by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy was featured by Rondo magazine and awarded the Star of the Month prize by Fono Forum magazine. Mozart’s Requiem received the Diapason d’or de l’année 2003, Johann Gottlieb Naumann’s opera Aci e Galatea was named opera recording of the year in Opernwelt magazine and Bach’s Easter Oratorio included in the Quarterly Critics’ Choice of the German Record Critics’ Award. The group’s recording of Bach’s B Minor Mass was Editor’s Choice in Gramophone magazine. Personal details
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Conductor
Frieder Bernius
| 1947Frieder Bernius’s work has earned great worldwide recognition. He is in demand internationally as a conductor and as a teacher. His principal artistic collaborators are the ensembles he founded himself, the Kammerchor Stuttgart, the Barockorchester Stuttgart, the Hofkapelle Stuttgart and the Klassische Philharmonie Stuttgart. As a guest conductor, he has collaborated repeatedly with, for example, the SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, the Stuttgarter Kammerorchester and the Streicherakademie Bozen. Great stylistic versatility is Frieder Bernius’s hallmark. Whether he conducts vocal works by Monteverdi, Bach, Händel, Mozart, Beethoven, Fauré and Ligeti, stage music by Mendelssohn or symphonies by Haydn, Burgmüller and Schubert, his work always aims for a sound that is at once unmistakably personal and at the same time oriented towards the original period sound ideal. He devotes himself equally to the rediscovery of 18th century operas and to first performances of contemporary compositions. He is particularly interested in the musical history of southwestern Germany. Carus-Verlag has awarded Frieder Bernius a Golden CD for his complete recording of the sacred music of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The award was presented to him during the German Choir Festival in Stuttgart 2016. The sale of over 250,000 recordings, which has been acclaimed with a number of awards, has made a not insignificant contribution to what today is the obvious presence of Mendelssohn's complete œuvre in the concert repertoire. Personal details
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Soloist - soprano
Johanna Winkel
Johanna Winkel studied singing with Mechthild Böhme and Caroline Thomas, and attended master classes to augment her education. She gave her international debut in 2008 with Peter Neumann and the Concerto Köln in Nantes. She subsequently performed with, among others, the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, the SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart and the SWR Symphony Orchestra as well as the NDR Choir. She has sung, for example, at the Musikfest Berlin, the Lucerne Festival and La Folle Journée. Johanna Winkel has won several prizes for opera singing and was awarded first prize in the Cantilena Singing Competition in Bayreuth. Johanna Winkel has performed various operatic roles in historical performance locations such as the Margravial Opera House in Bayreuth and the Ekhof Theater in Gotha. She can be heard on many live recordings as well as on a number of CD recordings. Personal details
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Soloist - alto
Sophie Harmsen
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Soloist - tenor
Sebastian Kohlhepp
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Soloist - bass
Arttu Kataja
Reviews
... Sehr überzeugend die Aufnahme mit Frieder Bernius ... Der Chorklang ist sehr homogen, auch das Solistenquartett passt perfekt zusammen. Es ist alles sehr präzise und ausbalanciert, auch die Übergänge sind schön gestaltet.
Eva Oertle, Radio SRF2 Kultur, 05/2020
... Bernius sorgt für ausgewogene Zusammenhänge jenseits von ausufernden Kontrastwirkungen, in den Tempi wie in der Dynamik. ... Das verlorene Pathos mindert die Größe der Partitur nicht, es stellt ihre Intention erst ins rechte Licht.
Gustav Danzinger, CHOR aktuell, 4/2019
Nulle précipitation militante à la manière des premières relectures (), mais une vision très unitaire, lumineuse (), à hauteur d'homme, sans théâtralisation excessive, levant le pied sur la nuance dans les moments les plus chargés.
Yannick Million, CLASSICA, Février 2020
... Hier wird nicht gebrüllt, sondern aufeinander gehört, alles ist in Balance - ein Beethoven ganz ohne Druck, frisch und jung, ein großer Wurf.
Susanne Benda, Stuttgarter Zeitung, 7./8.12.2019
... Diese Missa Solemnis erweist sich als intelligentes Fest der Sinne, an dem man sich gar nicht satthören möchte. Beethoven-Jahr, Du kannst kommen!
REINHARD MAWICK, Zeitzeichen, 10/2019
... One striking feature of this re cording is the remarkable balance that is almost always readily apparent. ... With no noticeable flaws in the quality of the recording and fine CD notes, this recording of Beethoven’s Missa solemnis op. 123 deserves to be heard by all interested in Beethoven’s choral music.
Bob Chambers, CHORAL JOURNAL, October 2019
Huit ans après une version remarquable de la Messe en ut du même Beethoven, Frieder Bernius, à la tête de son Kammerchor et de sa Hofkappelle de Stuttgart, s’attaque à la monumentale Missa Solemnis opus 123.
Benedict Hévry, Res Musica, 17.09.2019
Die Wirkung der Einspielung ist ungemein frisch und jung, und Klangeffekte wie etwa das abgedunkelte, fast klanglose „Passus et sepultus est” im Credo lassen einen den Atem anhalten. Ein ganz großer Wurf!
Susanne Benda, Fono Forum, 13.08.2019
Mit dieser Aufnahme erschließt sich Beethovens „größstes Werk” tatsächlich ganz neu. Staunen ist ausdrücklich zugelassen - und wohl auch gar nicht zu vermeiden.
Sven Hiemke, Musik & Kirche, Juli/August 2019
Das Resultat ist ein in sich schlüssiger, fließender und dynamischer Ablauf - ein homogenes Ganzes.
Haino Rindler, Chorzeit, Juli/August 2019
Rhythmic intelligence has always distinguished Bernius’s recordings ... and he never allows a line to sag. ... there’s so much to enjoy here.
Peter Quantrill, Gramophone, Juli 2019
Die große Kunst, Klang und Struktur plastisch und vor allem spannend zu modellieren, beherrscht Bernius auf einem Niveau, das einem immer wieder den Atem raubt.
ChorPfalz, Mai/Juni 2019
Die Dynamik ist in feinster Weise austariert, viele Gesangsphrasen werden fast instrumental geführt, alles fließt, keiner schreit, keiner drückt.
Susanne Benda, STN und STZ, 31.05.2019
On tient là l’un des plus beaux disques entendus depuis plusieurs années, à même de justifier un Must de ConcertoNet des plus mérités.
Florent Coudeyrat, ConcertoNet, 18.05.2019
Kammerchor und Hofkapelle Stuttgart briljerer i detaljar som dette.
Sjur Haga Bringeland, Dag og Tid, 16.05.2019
Und das ist meines Erachtens ein weiterer wichtiger Punkt, der diese Aufnahme so besonders und absolut empfehlenswert macht...
Claus Fischer, rbb Kultur, 14.05.2019
Bien sûr, le Kammerchor Stuttgart séduit par sa légèreté dès le Kyrie ..., par son galbe enveloppant ..., par sa malléabilité dans les fugues.
Benoît Fauchet, Diapason, 05/2019
Gleichwohl bewältigt die bestens aufeinander eingespielte Musikformation aus Stuttgart die Aufgabe bravourös. Bernius meißelt seinen Beethoven mit Feingeist.
Aachener Zeitung, 26.04.2019
Frieder Bernius steuert in gewohnt souveräner Manier den Riesentanker sicher in den Hafen.
Tiroler Tageszeitung, 10.04.2019
Die Kunst, Klang und Struktur plastisch und vor allem spannend zu modelieren, beherrscht Bernius auf einem Niveau, das einem immer wieder den Atem raubt.
Chor Pfalz, 3/2019
Die goldene Mitte aus sakralem Ernst und innerer Bewegung trifft man traumwandelnd. Kammerchor und Hofkapelle Stuttgart präsentieren sich auf voller Höhe ihres Könnens.
Robert Fraun-Holzer, Rondo, 3/2019