Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca

Dedicated to one of the composer's most popular works, this release celebrates J.S. Bach's Mass in B Minor -- a masterpiece of writing that ranks among the greatest liturgical settings in the history of music.

The composition was born out of the 'Kyrie' and 'Gloria' movements that Bach had originally dedicated to the Elector of Saxony (in the hope of securing an official title at his court). After his eventual move to Dresden, the composer decided to combine these with further, separately composed movements taken from the Ordinary -- namely a setting of the 'Symbolum Nicenum', a Sanctus from 1724 and parodies from earlier pieces that were rearranged as the 'Osanna', 'Benedictus', 'Agnus Dei' and 'Dona nobis pacem'.

From the use of opera techniques, as seen in the varied sequence of choruses and arias, to highly varied instrumentation and styles -- including the French overture arrangement of the Sanctus -- Bach created a monumental work that is rich in both polyphony and virtuosic display. It was a deliberately structured composition, one that differed to his usual practise of writing for an imminent performance and which is far too long for proper liturgical use.

Bach probably never got to hear the great Mass performed in its entirety, but numerous copies of the work dating from the 19th century point to its renaissance more than a century later. Featuring assured solo performances, strong chorus singing as well as meticulous playing by the Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca, this release comprises a worthy addition to the Brilliant Classics' choral library.

Other information:

-The importance of the Bach's B minor Mass is difficult to overestimate: some consider it the greatest, deepest, and most influential classical work of all history, certainly it is the most quintessential work of Bach, a summing up of his creative, human and religious powers, and a source of inspiration, solace and faith of humans of all ages, and ages to come.

- This famous recording, licensed from the Swiss label Arts, is based on the Historically Informed Performance Practice, and presents the best voices in this field: the celebrated Roberta Invernizzi, Lynn Dawson, Gloria Banditelli and the famous German tenor Christoph Prégardien.The Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca conducted by Diego Fasolis let their Mediterranean sun shine on this Catholic liturgical Mass by Nordic protestant Johann Sebastian Bach: an experience of universal power and beauty.

- Comprehensive booklet notes in German, with English translation.

- Complete sung texts and English translation available on www.brilliantclassics.com.

Giovanni Legrenzi is one of the Baroque period’s most important figures, a composer who enjoyed success in opera, oratorio, cantata and chamber music. Having spent the last twenty years of his life in Venice, where he was appointed maestro di cappella of St Mark’s Basilica in 1685, Legrenzi is best remembered today for his cultivation of chamber music.

This release is dedicated to the final three of Legrenzi’s five large instrumental collections, with the first of the featured trio (Op.8) marking the beginning of a more ambitious and expansive style. Highlights include the Sonata La Cremona, notable for its use of four rather than two violins, and La Basadonna, a work whose antiphonal treatment of two trio-sonata ensembles was ahead of its time. The CD also features Legrenzi’s most musically complex collection, published as Op.10. Two extracts from Op.16 complete the line-up: based on the stately balletto and lively corrente dances, No.3 and No.9 are unusual for their respective attacca and chaconne-based structures.

With their innovative tonal sense, melodically and rhythmically vigorous themes, as well as intricate yet highly expressive counterpoint, these works reveal Legrenzi as an exuberant innovator. Through them we hear a crucial mid-point in the history of Venetian instrumental music.

Authentically Venetian performances of Venetian music.

1615 and 1630 - these are the two dates delimiting the period from which the pieces on this CD were drawn, and each marks both an end and a beginning. In 1615, Giovanni Gabrieli’s Canzoni et Sonate were published posthumously. His music was still being imitated fifty years later. The year 1630 saw Venice ravished by the plague. Fifty thousand people died, including many singers and musicians working at San Marco, the most important musical institution of Venice.

This milestone of the Arcana catalogue returns with new artwork, new catalogue number (previously A330) and a new cover featuring ‘Boy with Flute’ by the Venetian painter Domenico Maggiotto. All the recorder concertos on this CD were written expressly for flauto or flautino and show the imagination, delicacy, freshness, virtuosity and sometimes even melancholy, which Vivaldi put into his writing for this instrument. Oberlinger has intentionally chosen tuning at 440 Hz since, in Venice, in Vivaldi’s time, tuning was higher than in neighbouring musical centres such as Rome. With this high tuning, the sound of the gentle gut strings becomes clearer and more brilliant. Dorothee Oberlinger is an expressive virtuoso who is seen as one of the best recorder players in the world. She collaborates particularly intensively with the top Italian period ensemble Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca, with whom she has given many concerts throughout Europe. Their joint CD of concertos by Antonio Vivaldi with violinist Giuliano Carmignola, has received numerous awards from the international musical press including Diapason d’or de l’année.

This CD showcases a variety of 17th-century italian. Recognizing the importance and vitality of dance music, these composers used dance forms as a basis for their own music. The popular sounds of dance music thus influence an entire generation of composers. “the power of rhythm” (Descartes) lies in the brevity of the phrases and the simplicity of the material.

The Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca present a selection of wonderfully expressive art through the works on this disc: