Weihnachtslieder. Deluxe-Box
Throughout the world Christmas is celebrated – and everywhere, singing Christmas carols is part of the celebrations. This limited special edition offers over 100 of the most beautiful German and international carols: For the first time, the “Weihnachtslieder” (German Christmas Carols) as well as the “Weihnachtslieder aus aller Welt” (Christmas Carols of the World) of the prize-winning LIEDERPROJEKT are being issued together in a box set of 4 CDs.
The LIEDERPROJEKT is a charity project produced by Carus and Southwest German Radio. For every box set sold, 2 EUR will be donated to projects which promote singing with children.
Weihnachtslieder Vol. 1
Weihnachtslieder Vol 2
Weihnachtslieder aus aller Welt Vol. 1
Weihnachtslieder aus aller Welt Vol. 2
Contents
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Author
SWR2 (Südwestrundfunk)
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Preface writer
Michael Wersin
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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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Ensemble
Calmus Ensemble
Homogenität, Präzision, Leichtigkeit und Witz – das sind die Markenzeichen von Calmus, heutzutage eine der erfolgreichsten Vokalgruppen Deutschlands. Das Ensemble besitzt eine Klangkultur, wie sie nur von wenigen erreicht wird. Die breite Palette an Klangfarben, die Musizierfreude, die die Musiker auf der Bühne vermitteln, aber auch ihre abwechslungs- und einfallsreichen Programme werden von der Presse immer wieder hervorgehoben. Die fünf Leipziger haben eine ganze Reihe internationaler Preise und Wettbewerbe gewonnen, u.a. den ECHO Klassik und den Supersonic Award, und der Radius ihrer Aktivitäten wird ständig größer und führt sie durch ganz Europa sowie Nord- und Südamerika. 2010 gab das Quintett sein Debüt in der New Yorker Carnegie Hall.
Unermüdlich sind die Musiker bestrebt, neues Repertoire zu entdecken. Geprägt von der vielhundertjährigen Tradition großer deutscher Knabenchöre sind sie natürlich in der Vokalmusik der Renaissance, des Barock und der Romantik zu Hause. Musik unserer Zeit ist ihnen aber ebenfalls ein echtes Anliegen. In allen Sparten gibt es immer wieder interessante Partnerschaften mit Kollegen wie der Lautten Compagney Berlin, dem Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, der Hamburger Ratsmusik oder der Bigband des Hessischen Rundfunks. Da diese im Bereich der zeitgenössischen Musik häufig völlig neues Repertoire bedeuten, hat Calmus über die Jahre zahlreiche Kompositionsaufträge u. a. an Bernd Franke, Steffen Schleiermacher, Wolfram Buchenberg, Mathew Rosenblum, Bill Dobbins, Michael Denhoff und Harald Banter vergeben und Uraufführungen gesungen. Dass sie gerne Pop, Folk und Jazz sowie Chansons und Evergreens der zwanziger Jahre singen, das versteht sich von selbst!
Ein Teil ihrer Zeit ist der Nachwuchsförderung gewidmet, denn Unterricht und Workshops gehören zu ihrem Alltag, zu Hause in Leipzig und unterwegs. Kein Wunder, dass Calmus mit der einzigartigen Besetzung aus Sopranistin, Countertenor, Tenor, Bariton und Bass überall auf der Welt immer mehr Fans hat. Personal details
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Ensemble
NDR Chor Hamburg
Ever since the NDR Choir came into existence in 1946, it has been committed not only to the classical and romantic repertoire but also to contemporary music, which had been banned for a considerable period prior to the choir’s establishment. As a result, the preparation and performance of Schönberg’s unfinished opera Moses und Aron was the focus of worldwide attention in the post-war years. Especially under the direction of Helmut Franz, Max Thurn’s successor, a-cappella literature became a special trade- mark of the choir, a tradition maintained by subsequent conductors such as Roland Bader, Horst Neumann, Robin Gritton and Hans-Christoph Rademann. The choir has also enjoyed the stimulus of working with notable guest conductors such as Eric Ericson, Marcus Creed, Michael Gläser and Rupert Huber. Since the 2008/09 season, Philipp Ahmann has been choral director of the NDR Choir. Among the highpoints of recent years have been performances of Handel’s Israel in Egypt, the Ligeti Requiem and Schönberg’s Gurrelieder. Of the choir’s many CD recordings, the a-cappella works by Max Reger (dir. by H.-Chr. Rademann), which received the 2005 “Prize of the German Record Critics,” deserves special mention. Plans for the 2009/2010 season include Haydn’s The Creation under Martin Haselböck and a concert performance of Bizet’s opera Carmen as well as the choir’s own subscription series under the direction of Philipp Ahmann. Personal details
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Ensemble
Ensemble 94
The Ensemble 94 was founded by Kay Johannsen in 1994 to participate in musical activities in the Stiftskirche (collegiate church) in Stuttgart, but since then it has also performed in many independent orchestral projects. Its members come from Germany, Holland, Belgium, Italy and Switzerland, and they are widely experienced as soloists and in chamber music. An uncommon feature of the ensemble is the fact that the players have the ability to play either baroque or modern instruments, in accordance with the stylistic epoch of the music being performed. The concert master of the ensemble is Christine Busch, Professor of violin at the Stuttgart Conservatory. According to the Stuttgarter Nachrichten, this ensemble is characterized by “boundless zest for music making” as well as “subtile dynamic” and “joy in articulatory detail.” The Stuttgarter Zeitung stated “soloists performing with verve, elegance and stylistic sensitivity” and found that the group “need not shun comparison with the best Baroque orchestras.” The Württembergische Blätter für Kirchenmusik wrote about the Telemann-CD “In the accompaniment by Ensemble 94, founded by Johannsen in 1994, the singers were provided with an appropriate ensemble of exquisite articulation, at all times subservient to the vocal line, which left nothing to be desired.” Personal details
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Ensemble
SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart
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Ensemble
Orpheus Vokalensemble
The Orpheus Vokalensemble was founded in 2005 as the professional chamber choir of the Landesmusikakademie Baden-Württemberg. This is an international ensemble which places the highest vocal demands on its members. Internationally recognized choral conductors are engaged for each assignment, and they exercise lasting influence on the artistic quality of the ensemble. Its model is the legendary Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (New York), whose name it shares. Its artistic aims, in the preparation and performance of works, are to bring the fundamentals of chamber music – personal commitment and mutual respect – to bear on the work of a vocal ensemble. Its members have the right to participate in the choice of repertoire, soloists, conductors and concert programs. Several composers have already written works for the Orpheus Vokalensemble, including Bo Hansson, Knut Nystedt, Gregor Hübner and Jürgen Essl. In 2006 the ensemble was invited to the International Lake Constance Festival. Other invitations to important festivals have followed. Personal details
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Ensemble
Blechbläserenesemble Ludwig Güttler
The Ludwig Güttler Brass Ensemble from Dresden was formed by Ludwig Güttler in 1978. It combines solo players from the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra of Dresden) and the Dresden Philharmonia. Concert tours have taken the ensemble the length and breadth of Europe as well as to Asia. For years now, CD, radio and television productions have provided impressive evidence of the ensemble’s work. Ludwig Güttler has been especially praised for his ability to transfer the experience gained through playing chamber music and instrumental solos to the medium of the brass ensemble, and for achieving with this ensemble an extremely lively, flexible and finely nuanced music-making. Each of their programmes contains a series of hitherto unknown or rarely performed works which he has unearthed or prepared for the ensemble. In general the brass ensemble uses modern orchestral instruments of German design. Personal details
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Ensemble
Calmus Ensemble
Homogenität, Präzision, Leichtigkeit und Witz – das sind die Markenzeichen von Calmus, heutzutage eine der erfolgreichsten Vokalgruppen Deutschlands. Das Ensemble besitzt eine Klangkultur, wie sie nur von wenigen erreicht wird. Die breite Palette an Klangfarben, die Musizierfreude, die die Musiker auf der Bühne vermitteln, aber auch ihre abwechslungs- und einfallsreichen Programme werden von der Presse immer wieder hervorgehoben. Die fünf Leipziger haben eine ganze Reihe internationaler Preise und Wettbewerbe gewonnen, u.a. den ECHO Klassik und den Supersonic Award, und der Radius ihrer Aktivitäten wird ständig größer und führt sie durch ganz Europa sowie Nord- und Südamerika. 2010 gab das Quintett sein Debüt in der New Yorker Carnegie Hall.
Unermüdlich sind die Musiker bestrebt, neues Repertoire zu entdecken. Geprägt von der vielhundertjährigen Tradition großer deutscher Knabenchöre sind sie natürlich in der Vokalmusik der Renaissance, des Barock und der Romantik zu Hause. Musik unserer Zeit ist ihnen aber ebenfalls ein echtes Anliegen. In allen Sparten gibt es immer wieder interessante Partnerschaften mit Kollegen wie der Lautten Compagney Berlin, dem Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, der Hamburger Ratsmusik oder der Bigband des Hessischen Rundfunks. Da diese im Bereich der zeitgenössischen Musik häufig völlig neues Repertoire bedeuten, hat Calmus über die Jahre zahlreiche Kompositionsaufträge u. a. an Bernd Franke, Steffen Schleiermacher, Wolfram Buchenberg, Mathew Rosenblum, Bill Dobbins, Michael Denhoff und Harald Banter vergeben und Uraufführungen gesungen. Dass sie gerne Pop, Folk und Jazz sowie Chansons und Evergreens der zwanziger Jahre singen, das versteht sich von selbst!
Ein Teil ihrer Zeit ist der Nachwuchsförderung gewidmet, denn Unterricht und Workshops gehören zu ihrem Alltag, zu Hause in Leipzig und unterwegs. Kein Wunder, dass Calmus mit der einzigartigen Besetzung aus Sopranistin, Countertenor, Tenor, Bariton und Bass überall auf der Welt immer mehr Fans hat. Personal details
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Ensemble
Thomanerchor Leipzig
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Ensemble
Les Escapades
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Ensemble
Lords of the Chords
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Ensemble
Ensemble Licht und Schatten
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Ensemble
Hamburger Ratsmusik
The ensemble Hamburger Ratsmusik has had a long and close association with Johann Philipp Krieger. After all, his operas were performed by the original group during the composer’s lifetime at the Oper am Gänsemarkt in Hamburg. Over a decade ago, the ensemble revived Krieger’s cantatas from the Bokemeyer Collection, performed them at Schloss Gottorf, and recorded them on CD. This exploratory work led to creative collaborations and friendships, as with the Krieger scholar Dr. Klaus-Jürgen Gundlach. The performance of the Musicalischer Seelen- Frieden in the place for which it was written, the Weissenfels Schlosskirche, was one of the highlights in this regard. However, the greatest surprise came from another Herr Krieger, who spoke to the Hamburger Ratsmusik musicians after a concert in Altdorf in Franconia, and then showed them his ancestors’ charter of nobility from Emperor Leopold. This CD, which the ensemble recorded with Doro thee Mields, forms part of this living tradition. In recording these concert her indescribable and committed singing, always guaranteed a thrilling experience. After 21 years of working together as an ensemble, 25 CDs – almost all world premiere recordings – numerous concerts, two Echo-Klassik awards and a growing enthusiasm for the music of the Renaissance, Baroque, and classical periods, Hamburger Ratsmusik is looking forward to more discoveries and projects. Personal details
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Ensemble
Niniwe
Vokalmusik auf höchstem Niveau verspricht dieses energiegeladene Ensemble, das mit seinen kunstvollen Arrangements ungeahnte Klangwelten in der A-cappella-Szene hörbar macht. Elemente aus Jazz, Klassik, Pop und Weltmusik verschmelzen zu einem modernen, kraftvollen, zugleich sinnlichen Sound, der stets dem Authentischen nachspürt. Eigenständigkeit, hohe Virtuosität, ein homogener und gleichzeitig facettenreicher Klang brachte Niniwe seit 2002 internationale Anerkennung und zahlreiche Auszeichnungen. Personal details
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Ensemble
Athesinus Consort Berlin
The Athesinus Consort Berlin, named after the composer Leonhard Lechner Athesinus (ca. 1553–1606), was founded by Klaus-Martin Bresgott in 1992. He has been the conductor of the ensemble since then. The ensemble, which usually performs as a double quartet and – when enlarged – as a soloistic chamber choir, rehearses and performs both a cappella and continuo literature of the late Renaissance and Baroque as well as modern and contemporary works, which regularly result in world premieres. The ensemble members, all experienced concert singers who are also active in the Collegium Vocale Gent, the Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks, the SWR Vokalensemble and the RIAS-Kammerchor, as well as on the stage of the Deutsches Theater Berlin, with Sasha Waltz & Guests and others, are united in their delight sounding out the verbal images of speech and suggestive arts. All of the ensemble members are active as soloists in addition to their activities in larger ensembles. The spectrum here ranges from Johann Sebastian Bach’s oratorios to experimental music of the 21st century. The latest successes of the ensemble include, among others, the world premiere of the music theatre piece Paulus. Das ängstliche Harren der Kreatur by Thomas Jennefelt in 2011, the world premiere of the tryptich Du bist mein Schlaf by Frank Schwemmer in 2012, the world premiere of Drei Gedichte von Rainer Maria Rilke by Jonathan Brell (*1987) in 2013, as well as the world premiere of Turbulent Days – fünf Spruchmotetten nach Martin Luther King und Martin Luther für 8–12-stimmiges Vokalensemble, Saxophon und Schlagwerk by Frank Schwemmer and Anyone can let you down – no one will let you down by Thomas Jennefelt in 2014. In addition to specific compositional focuses, the Athesinus Consort Berlin has committed itself to selected topics in which the texts are of definitive significance. One emphasis is on the innumerable forgotten strophes of the cornucopia of German folk song. Classical concert principles recede into the background and make way for a more individual form of expression. Exemplary thereof are the collaborations with songwriters, jazz musicians, drummers and percussionists as well as dancers and pantomimes. Since 2010 the Athesinus Consort Berlin has regularly released CDs, including O Heiland, reiß die Himmel auf … vergessene Strophen der Weihnacht (2010), Signale ( 2011) w ith w orks by Michael Praetorius and Thomas Jennefelt or Boten ( 2012) w ith w orks b y J ohann A dam Hiller, Max Bruch, Hugo Distler and others. In 2013 Leonhard Lechner: Mein süße Freud auf Erden. Sacred Choral Music was released (Carus 83.384; a tribute from the ensemble to the man who gave it its name – the works on this CD are also available complete as a music edition, Carus 4.022), followed by Frank Schwemmer: Perlmuttfalter. Contemporary Choral Music (Carus 83.464) in 2014. 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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Conductor
Hans-Christoph Rademann
| 1965Conductor Hans-Christoph Rademann is an immensely versatile artist with a broad repertoire who devotes himself with equal passion and expertise both to the performance and rediscovery of early music and to the first performances and cultivation of Contemporary Music. Born in Dresden and raised in the Erzgebirge mountains, he was influenced at an early age by the great Central German kantorial and musical tradition. He was a student at the traditional Kreuzgymnasium, a member of the famous Kreuzchor, and studied choral and orchestral conducting at the Carl Maria von Weber University of Music in Dresden. During his studies, he founded the Dresdner Kammerchor and formed it into a top international choir which is still under his direction today. Since 2013, Hans-Christoph Rademann has been the academy director of the International Bach Academy Stuttgart. He regularly collaborates with leading choirs and ensembles of the international music scene. From 1999 to 2004 he was chief conductor of the NDR Choir and from 2007 to 2015 chief conductor of the RIAS Chamber Choir. Guest conducting engagements have led and continue to lead him to the Nederlandse Bachvereniging, the Collegium Vocale Gent, the Akademie für Alte Musik, the Freiburger Barockorchester, the Deutsche Radiophilharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, the Sinfonieorchester Basel, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Luxembourg, among others. Hans-Christoph Rademann has been awarded prizes and honors for his artistic work, including the Johann Walter Plaque of the Saxon Music Council (2014), the Saxon Constitutional Medal (2008), the Sponsorship Prize as well as the Art Prize of the state capital Dresden (1994 and 2014 respectively). He received the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik several times for his numerous CD recordings (most recently in 2016), as well as the Grand Prix du Disque (2002), the Diapason d’Or (2006 & 2011), the CHOC de l’année 2011 and the Best Baroque Vocal Award 2014. In 2016 he was awarded the European Church Music Prize of the city of Schwäbisch Gmünd. His exemplary interpretation and recording of the complete works of Heinrich Schütz with the Dresdner Kammerchor in the Stuttgart Carus-Verlag, which was completed in 2019, was awarded the newly endowed Heinrich Schütz Prize as well as the OPUS KLASSIK 2020 in the same year. Hans-Christoph Rademann is professor of choral conducting at the Carl Maria von Weber University of Music in Dresden. He is also artistic director of the Musikfest Erzgebirge, ambassador of the Erzgebirge and patron of the Christian Hospice Service Dresden. Personal details
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Conductor
Marcus Creed
The conductor Marcus Creed was born and grew up on the south coast of England. He began his studies at King’s College in Cambridge, where he had the opportunity to sing in the famous King’s College Choir. Further studies took him to Christ Church in Oxford and the Guildhall School in London. Marcus Creed moved to Berlin in 1977. Stations in his professional career have been the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Hochschule der Künste, as well as the Gruppe Neue Musik and the Scharoun Ensemble. From 1987 to 2001, Marcus Creed was artistic director of the RIAS-Kammerchor. In 1998, he accepted a professorship for conducting at the Musikhochschule in Cologne. Marcus Creed has been artistic director of the SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart since 2003. His particular objective with this ensemble has been to make renewed performances of outstanding compositions from the recent past, including, for example, works by Luigi Nono, György Kurtág, Wolfgang Rihm or Heinz Holliger. Marcus Creed is regularly invited to international festivals for both early music and new music and he regularly collaborates with the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, the Freiburger Barockorchester and Concerto Köln. His CD releases have won international awards for their stylistically sure and acoustically sensitive interpretations. Among others, he has been awarded the German Record Critics’ Award, the Edison Award, the Diapason D’Or, the Cannes Classical Award, and the Echo Classic Prize. Personal details
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Conductor
Michael Alber
| 1963
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Conductor
Klaus-Martin Bresgott
| 1967Klaus-Martin Bresgott was born 1967 in Greifswald and initially studied Protestant theology, later German language and literature and art history (M. A.), parallel thereto choral conducting. Contracts as an ensemble singer led him to the most notable concert venues in Europe under conductors such as René Jacobs, Marcus Creed, Daniel Reuss, Hans-Christoph Rademann and Fabio Luisi, and directors such as Sasha Waltz, Luc Perceval, Barrie Kosky and others. His main focus is on ensemble work that spans epochs and interdisciplinary contexts. This has led to a regular co-operation with composers and poets of our time such as Thomas Jennefelt and Frank Schwemmer as well as Christa Wolf (†) and Christian Lehnert. As well as works on art history, including Ernst Barlach, he has edited several books of choral music, including Frau Musica spricht. Chorbuch Reformation (2011) and Chorbuch Leonhard Lechner (2014, Carus 4.022), Vier Weihnachtsmotetten (2015, Carus 7.389) and Hugo Distler’s Die Weihnachtsgeschichte op. 10 (2015, Carus 10.011). He was awarded the “Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik” in 2008 for the first complete recording of the Geistliche Chormusik op. 12 by Hugo Distler, 2019 the french "Choc de Classica" for Samuel Scheidt: Cantiones Sacrae. Personal details
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Conductor
Georg Christoph Biller
| 1955-2022Thomaskantor seit 1992 Personal details
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Soloist
Angelika Kirchschlager
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Soloist
Christian Elsner
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Soloist
Paulina Elsner
| 2000
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Soloist
Leonhard Elsner
| 1998
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Soloist
Ruth Sandhoff
The repertoire of mezzo-soprano Ruth Sandhoff ranges from early Baroque works to contemporary compositions. Lied singing is her especial passion, also in collaboration with the choreographer Sasha Waltz. Ruth Sandhoff has given concert tours in the USA, in Australia and in Europe. She has participated in numerous CD productions both in Germany and abroad. The recording of J. C. Bach’s “Missa da Requiem” with the RIAS Chamber Choir was awarded the German Record Critics’ Award. Personal details
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Soloist - soprano
Dorothee Mields
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Soloist - soprano
Sibylla Rubens
German soprano Sibylla Rubens studied singing (concert and opera) both at the State University of Music in Trossingen and in Frankfurt/Main. The moving timbre of her voice, her natural charisma and the sensitive sense of perfection that she applies to her extensive repertoire make Sibylla Rubens a much sought-after artist in Germany and abroad. She performs regularly with such conductors as Frieder Bernius, Riccardo Chailly, Enoch zu Guttenberg, Philippe Herreweghe, Kent Nagano, Helmuth Rilling, or Christian Thielemann. Sibylla Rubens is known to be an exceptionell lied singer and is regularly invited to the European lied centres. More than 80 recordings are proof of her artistic achievements. She has passionately dedicated herself to promoting young singers both as a juror in international singing competitions and in regular master classes. Personal details
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Soloist - soprano
Lydia Teuscher
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Soloist - soprano
Monika Mauch
The soprano Monika Mauch studied singing initially with Richard Wistreich at the Institute of Early Music at the Musikhochschule Trossingen. She continued her training by studying for a year with Jill Feldman in Paris. Since the beginning of her singing career she has focused primarily on projects in the field of early music. She has worked with such leading ensembles as the Ricercar Ensemble, Taverner Consort, Red Byrd, the Hilliard Ensemble, L’arpa festante (Munich), the Ensemble Daedalus (Geneva), CordArte Ensemble (Cologne), and Montreal Baroque. Monika Mauch’s vocal achievements are documented on numerous radio and CD recordings. Her recordings for the Altbachische Archiv and the B minor Mass with Cantus Coelln and her “Morimur” CD with the Hilliard Ensemble have attracted especial attention. As a concert singer Monika Mauch works on a regular basis with conductors such as Roland Wilson, Manfred Cordes, René Jacobs and Philippe Herreweghe. Personal details
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Soloist - soprano
Sarah Wegener
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Soloist - alto
Christine Müller
Christine Müller, mezzo-soprano, studied in Trossingen and Vienna . She is a sought-after concert and lied singer with a broad repertoire who concertizes both at home and abroad. Numerous radio, television and CD productions document her achievements as a singer. She has earned special merit through her discoveries and publications of forgotten musical works, especially in the field of the lied. Personal details
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Soloist - alto
Ingeborg Danz
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Soloist - countertenor
Franz Vitzthum
FThe former Regensburger Domspatz Franz Vitzthum received his vocal studies with Kai Wessel in Cologne. He regularly appears as a guest at international festivals and has worked together with such conductors as Nicolas McGegan, Hermann Max, Marcus Creed and Philippe Herreweghe. As a much sought-after chamber musician, he performs concerts together with the lutenist Julian Behr, the Capricornus Consort Basel and his vocal ensemble Stimmwerck. Personal details
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Soloist - tenor
Christoph Prégardien
As one of the outstanding lyric tenors of today, Christoph Pregardien is highly regarded as a lieder singer. He specializes in lieder and oratorio and his repertoire encompasses all periods. Christoph Pregardien and his accompanist Michael Gees received the MIDEM Classical Award 2009 for their recording of Schubert’s “Die schone Mullerin”. Personal details
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Soloist - tenor
Julian Prégardien
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Soloist - tenor
Andreas Weller
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Soloist - tenor
Thomas Cooley
Thomas Cooley, tenor, was born in Minnesota and studied voice at the university there, then at the Richard Strauss Conservatory in Munich. He has participated in master classes in Aldeburgh, England, with Anthony Rolfe-Johnson and Ian Partridge, and has studied the art of Lieder singing with Peter Schreier and Rudolf Piernay. His operatic repertoire encompasses Mozart, Rossini, Handel and Monteverdi. He was a member of the company at the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich from 2002–06. The major works by Monteverdi, Bach, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Mendelssohn and Britten are at the center of his repertoire, with a special emphasis on the Bach Evangelist roles and the great tenor parts in Handel. Important recent concert engagements included Bach’s St. Matthew Passion under Helmuth Rilling in Carnegie Hall, Haydn’s Nelson Mass under Welser-Möst, Britten’s War Requiem with the Munich Bach Chor, Edward Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius with the Sing-Akademie Berlin and Penderecki’s Credo, conducted by the composer. Thomas Cooley has also devoted himself to the art song, and he has made several recordings for Bayerischer Rundfunk, including Britten’s Holy Sonnets of John Donne and his Michelangelo Sonnets, Brahms Liebesliederwalzer and Schubert songs. Personal details
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Soloist - tenor
Jonas Kaufmann
Der vielseitige Münchner Tenor Jonas Kaufmann sorgt mit Liederabenden und Opernauftritten regelmäßig für Beifallsstürme im Publikum. Er gastiert an den international bedeutenden Opernbühnen und verfolgt neben seinem Opernschaffen auch eine Karriere als Konzertsänger.
Personal details
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Soloist - bass
Cornelius Hauptmann
| 1951
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Soloist - bass
Klaus Mertens
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Soloist - bass
Franz-Josef Selig
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Soloist - flute
Gaby Pas-Van Riet
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Soloist - guitar
Carsten Linck
Das Repertoire des Gitarristen Carsten Linck umfasst die Musik der frühen Renaissance bis zu Uraufführungen zeitgenössischer Kompositionen. Schwerpunkt seines künstlerischen Schaffens ist die Kammermusik, v. a. die Liedbegleitung. In Zusammenarbeit mit Sängern, Instrumentalisten und verschiedenen Ensembles gastierte er auf Konzertreisen in Europa und Asien. 1992 erhielt er den Kulturpreis der Stadt Essen. Personal details
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Soloist - piano
Götz Payer
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Soloist - piano
Juliane Ruf
Juliane Ruf studied in Mannheim and Saarbrucken with, among others, Irwin Gage. Early in her career she began specializing in lied presentation. She has won many competitions, including the “Wettbewerb für Liedkunst Stuttgart,” and in the meantime she concertizes regularly at festivals such as the “Klavierfestival Ruhr” or the “Heidelberger Frühling.” Personal details
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Soloist - piano
Michael Gees
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Soloist - piano
Gerold Huber
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Soloist - piano
Dietrich Henschel
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Soloist - piano
Jan Philip Schulze
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Soloist - piano
Antal Váradi
Antal Váradi was born in 1975 in Debrecen (Hungary). He studied organ and church music in his homeland and furthered his studies in the class of Prof. Ludger Lohmann at the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart. He passed his performers’ examination with distinction and is a qualified A-diploma church musician and voice teacher. Váradi has been awarded a number of prizes at international organ competitions (e.g., Nürnberg, Freiberg, Schramberg, Coldrano, Zurich). He is the boys’ choir collegium iuvenum Stuttgart’s accompanist, organist of both the Holy Cross Church and St. Thomas’ Church in Stuttgart and organ expert for the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg. He is also a sought-after accompanist for various choirs. Váradi’s intense interest in adapting symphonic works to the organ gave rise to the following arrangements: The Night on the Bare Mountain by Mussorgski, Harmonies du soir and Dance Macabre by Liszt and The Vltava by Smetana. He is active as a concert soloist both in Germany and abroad. Personal details
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Soloist - lute
Hugh Sandilands
Hugh Sandilands was born in Scotland in 1952. He studied guitar at the University of Vancouver, then lute with R. Nurse (Vancouver) and H. Smith (Basel). He has performed in concerts and recorded with G. Garrido, the Ensemble Fitzwilliam, Le Concert Lorrain, Real Compania de Opera da Camera, Ensemble Baroque de Perpignan, Capella Nova Graz, La Sestina, Ensemble Daedalus and Private Musicke. Personal details
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Soloist - oboe
Da-Yong Zhang
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Soloist - organ
Kay Johannsen
| 1961
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Soloist - viola
Janis Lielbardis
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Soloist - violin
Christine Busch
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Soloist - violin
Miriam Risch
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Soloist - violin
Lukas Friederich
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Soloist - violone
Barbara Pfeifer
Barbara Pfeifer performs in the gamba consort “Les Escapades,” as well as being their organizational manager. She is also an enthusiastic music pedagogue focusing on musical grassroots work. Personal details
Reviews
Cette édition spéciale limitée propose cent des plus beaux chants de Noël allemands et internationaux ... Une belle brochette d'artistes participent au projet.
Crescendo Magazine, 10.12.2017
Traditionelles mit modernen Akzenten für stimmungsvolle Momente im Dezember.
Austria Presse Agentur, 04.12.2017