Carissimi: Jephte

Los Músicos de Su Alteza has since the release of its first two albums on Alpha (Samaniego – Alpha 153 & Nebra – Alpha 171) established a reputation as the champion of unjustly forgotten Spanish music. In this new recording based on the themes of Torment and Ecstasy dear to the baroque mind, Luis Antonio González provides us with a selection of works that are as unexpected as they are unknown, tying everything together in the end with a masterpiece by Carissimi: Jephte.

The musicians breathe new life into 1640s Rome and all the emotions conveyed by the Cantatas on this recording: sin, guilt, regret, penitence, punishment, supreme joy, ecstasy and glory... This is a haunting album on which the artists take the link between text and music to a new jubilatory high as well as a great illustration of the harmonic wealth that played a determining role in the history of musical expression in general, and the first baroque period in particular.

In the oratorio Jephté, Carissimi makes use of very simple means, and the result is a summit, an unparalleled model of expressivity. Like Monteverdi’s works for the stage and Frescobaldi’s keyboard music, Carissimi’s sacred compositions are masterpieces of Baroque art.

Carissimi was the greatest exponent of the Latin sacred historia (oratorio). With dramatic flair, remarkable imagination and a verbal sensitivity equal to Monteverdi’s, he brought Biblical characters vividly to life. Alexander Weimann is one of the most sought-after ensemble directors, soloists and chamber music partners of his generation.

Hailed by the Washington Post as “One of the area’s important chamber ensembles”, The Bach Sinfonia, under the direction of conductor Daniel Abraham, gives an exciting and reflective performance exploring the beauty and tonal intricacies of some of the most stellar choral works of the 17th century on their second release with Dorian Sono Luminus – Passion and Lament : Choral Masterworks of the 17th Century.

Singers and Instrumentalists join forces for this recording of Biber’s Stabat Mater, a work music director Daniel Abraham prepared from original manuscripts for the modern concert premiere in May 2008. In addition to this forgotten masterwork, this recording offers the rare opportunity to explore six of Rossi’s radiant polyphonic Hebrew settings from Hashirim asher lish’lomo (The Songs of Solomon), the composer’s important choral offering of choral compositions for the standard Jewish liturgy.

Also on the album is Carissimi’s beautiful oratorio Histori di Jepthe, the first true masterwork in this genre which tells the story of Jepthe, the military general who must uphold his promise and sacrifice his daughter as an offering for his victory in battle. The dramatic musical imagery of this early oratorio includes songs of triumph and victory, innocence and praise, and anguish and lament which unfold in stunning solo passages and some of the most stirring choruses in all of the Baroque era.

Recorded in the heart of the Nation’s Capital, this album’s beautiful choral passages matched with the power and passion of the soloists’ performance, in addition to a premier recording, are sure to put this album at the top of every music lovers list.