Brahms: Geistliches Lied, Op. 30

Soli Deo Gloria is proud to release the last instalment of its successful Brahms Symphony series which sees John Eliot Gardiner and his Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique explore the music of Johannes Brahms.

This album is a celebration of the Fourth Symphony and the various pieces that contributed to its making.

From baroque to romantic, and from great orchestral pieces to intimate choral works, the listener gains a wonderful insight into Brahms’s mind and music making, through pieces that he loved and inspired him.

The Fourth Symphony was described by Richard Strauss as “a giant work, great in concept an invention, masterful in its form, and yet from A to Z genuine Brahms, in a word, an enrichment to our art”. Drawing from many sources of the musical past, it is nevertheless absolutely unique.

It is impregnated with baroque influence – the Finale was directly inspired by Bach’s cantata Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich. Brahms enjoyed conducting less known old repertoire such as Gabrieli’s Sanctus Benedictus and Schütz’s Saul, Saul. They influenced his choral writing as we can hear in the Geistliches Lied. Brahms was also famously inspired by Beethoven, and the Finale to the Fourth clearly owes to his Coriolan overture.

The booklet includes a conversation between John Eliot Gardiner and composer Hugh Wood, explaining how the pieces relate to each other and giving a moving account of Brahms as a composer and as a man.

This recording was made during the 2008 Brahms: Roots and Memories tour.

Considered one of the finest choirs in NZ, here is a terrific second CD with repertoire based on their recent Spring tour.

A journey in music through a year at Southwark Cathedral charting some of the major Festivals of the Church’s year from Advent to Remembrance.

A collection of both well-loved items and some less familiar works that might be heard at choral services in the Cathedral during the year.

A rare recording from the fine choir of London’s ‘other’ Cathedral!

The third release in Regent’s new ‘A Year at…’ series featuring a year in music from England’s major Cathedrals, which is building into a comprehensive survey of cathedral music repertoire.

Having focused on music from their home country before, the Norwegian Soloists’ Choir here present a German programme, featuring two of the most influential composers in 19th-century choral music: Johannes Brahms and Franz Schubert.

It includes both sacred and secular music, scored for male, female and mixed choir a cappella and accompanied, starting with a selection from Brahms’s deservedly popular Zigeunerlieder for mixed choir and piano. A contrast to these settings of Hungarian folk songs is provided by the autumnal Five Songs for mixed choir a cappella – a collection of poems dealing with the transience of youth, love and life. The motet Warum ist das Licht gegeben dem Mühseligen, shows Bach’s influence on the composer.

Schubert is represented with a setting of Psalm 23 for women’s choir and piano and Der Gesang der Geister über den Wassern.

The first recording from the magnificent Chapel Choir of Winchester College since Malcolm Archer (formerly Wells and St Paul’s Cathedrals) took over in 2007.

A beautiful collection of favourite anthems, including My beloved spake, How lovely are thy dwellings, Ave verum Corpus, Greater Love and Evening Hymn.

Several rarities, including Elgar’s great setting of Light out of Darkness and works by Sumsion and MacMillan.