Vivaldi: Sinfonia in B minor, RV169 'Al Santo Sepolcro'

Pergolesi completed his Stabat Mater a few days before his death, on 17 March 1736, prompting comparisons with another mythical figure, Mozart composing his Requiem. It is framed here by three more masterpieces of the pianto genre in a similar spirit of bittersweet sadness. Born in Buenos Aires to Slovenian parents, Bernarda Fink studied at the Instituto Superior de Arte del Teatro Colón. Today her repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the twentieth century, and she appears regularly with such great international orchestras as the Vienna Philharmonic and Berlin Philharmonic and with celebrated Baroque ensembles. Among the conductors with whom she works are Nikolaus Harnoncourt, René Jacobs, Mariss Jansons and Riccardo Muti. Since the start of her career, Bernarda Fink has been applauded in the leading concert halls of Europe and Argentina. She was recently heard in the role of Irene (Theodora) under the direction of Ivor Bolton at the Salzburg Festival and as Idamante in Luc Bondy’s production of Idomeneo conducted by Jesús López-Cobos at the Teatro Real in Madrid; she has also recorded the latter role for harmonia mundi with René Jacobs. She gives song recitals in the principal European and American musical centres. Bernarda Fink has taken part in more than 50 recordings.

Anna Prohaska studied at the Hanns Eisler Hochschule für Musik Berlin with Norma Sharp, Brenda Mitchell and Wolfram Rieger. She has a close association with the Staatsoper Berlin where her roles have included Blonde, Oscar, Tebaldo, Poppea (Agrippina), and Anne Trulove, with such conductors as Daniel Barenboim, Philippe Jordan, Ingo Metzmacher, and René Jacobs. Her work at the Salzburg festivals includes concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic and the Cleveland Orchestra as well as Don Giovanni (Zerlina) and Luigi Nono’s Al gran sole carico d’amore. She has also appeared at the Lucerne and Aix-en-Provence Festivals and in concert with Claudio Abbado (Berlin Philharmonic and Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolivar), Sir Simon Rattle (Berlin Philharmonic and Vienna Philharmonic), and Pierre Boulez (Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rund-funks). In recital she can be heard with Eric Schneider, with whom she recorded her first solo recital album.

A new release from a very recently formed ensemble which gave its first performance in October 2009.

Rare recordings of two settings of Mary’s passionate Easter lament. For their second L’Oiseau Lyre disc, Il Giardino Armonico, again under their director Giovanni Antonini, are joined by celebrated mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink, for a project exploring the Passion of Christ as seen through the eyes of the Virgin Mary. The two central works are both vocal settings of the Virgin’s lament. The first, Il Pianto di Maria, was long thought to be by Handel – a clear reflection of its outstanding musical quality. It was not until the 1990s that handwriting experts established it as the work of the little-known Venetian composer Giovanni Ferrandini. The other key vocal work will be the World Premiere recording of an aria by Francesco Conti – composer to the Habsburg court of Vienna - in which the martyr Lorenzo, threatened with being burnt alive, refuses to deny his Christian faith. This deeply touching aria features a rarely heard ancestor of the modern clarinet, frequently used in ‘pathetic’ arias of the period – the soprano chalumeau. Short instrumental pieces form a musical setting around these vocal jewels, and include music by Caldara, Marini, Pisendel, Weiss and Vivaldi.