Helmut Koch
Helmut Koch was a highly respected though somewhat lesser-known conductor who, probably unwisely, chose East Germany as the base of operations for most of his career. Still, as a conductor known largely for choral and operatic music, he flourished at home and in parts of Europe. He made numerous recordings in a broad range of repertory from Bach and Monteverdi to Schoenberg and Leo Spies. For all his seeming eclecticism, though, he favored Mozart -- especially the operas and choral works -- and Handel, and worked with some of the leading singers of his time, including Peter Schreier, Theo Adam, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Gundula Janowitz, and many others. Koch also became widely known for his arrangements of German folk music. A large number of Koch's recordings have been reissued on the Berlin Classics label, including many strictly instrumental performances.
Helmut Koch was born in Wuppertal, Germany, on April 5, 1908. Though he was attracted to music as a child, his first aspirations were to become a sound engineer for recordings and radio broadcasts. While carrying on studies in this field he also took courses in music and conducting (1926-1928), and among his teachers were some of the finest young maestros of the day, including Hermann Scherchen and Fritz Lehmann.
In the 1930s Koch worked for several different radio and recording studios as a sound engineer, but he also conducted the Berlin Schubert Choir on the side. Like many European artists his career took wing in the aftermath of World War II. In 1945 he founded the Kammerorchester Berlin, an ensemble he would lead in countless performances and recordings until his death in 1975. In 1948 Koch founded the Berlin Radio Choir and soon was regularly making recordings. Among his first important efforts was the 1949 recording of Monteverdi's L'Orfeo.
Among other significant early recordings was his Brahms Requiem (1958-1959) with Tomowa-Sintow and Günther Leib. In 1963 Koch was appointed director of the Berlin Singakademie, a position he held concurrently with his other two Berlin posts. In the 1960s and early '70s Koch made a number of important Mozart recordings, including the 1964 Mass in C minor (with Theo Adam), the 1965 Bastien und Bastienne, and the 1968 Der Schauspieldirektor (both with Peter Schreier). Koch also turn out acclaimed recordings of works by Haydn (The Creation), Bach (Brandenburg Concertos), Telemann and Vivaldi (various concertos), and scores of others.
© TiVo
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HAYDN, F.J.: Schopfung (Die) (The Creation) [Oratorio] (Koch) (Franz Joseph Haydn - Gottfried van Swieten)
Klassiek - Released by Berlin Classics on 1 jan. 1976
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
HANDEL, G.F.: Messiah (Sung in German) (Koch) (George Frideric Handel)
Klassiek - Released by Berlin Classics on 1 jan. 1976
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Christus am Ölberge
Rundfunkchor Berlin, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Solistenvereinigung des Berliner Rundfunks, Helmut Koch
Klassiek - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1970
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
HANDEL, G.F.: Oratorio Choruses (Koch)
Klassiek - Released by Berlin Classics on 2 mrt. 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Zwölf Contretänze / Elf Mödlinger Tänze / Sechs ländlerische Tänze / Zwölf deutsche Tänze
Kammerorchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Symfonische muziek - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1970
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
MOZART, W.A.: Bastien und Bastienne [Opera] (Koch)
Volledige opera's - Released by Berlin Classics on 12 nov. 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vivaldi, Nardini & Viotti: Italian Violin Concertos
Manfred Scherzer, Kammerorchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Klassiek - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1971
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
HANDEL, G.F.: Te Deum (Sung in German) (Koch)
Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Solistenvereinigung des Berliner Rundfunks, Helmut Koch, Günther Leib
Klassiek - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1969
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Song of Joy (The finest choirs)
Klassiek - Released by Berlin Classics on 20 feb. 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MOZART, W.A.: Schauspieldirektor (Der) [Opera] (Suhr)
Kammerorchester Berlin, Helmut Koch, Peter Schreier
Volledige opera's - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Requiem allemand, Op. 45 (Mono Version)
Clara Ebers, Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
HANDEL, G.F.: Messiah (Sung in German) (excerpts) (Koch) (George Frideric Handel)
Klassiek - Released by Berlin Classics on 1 jan. 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Monteverdi: L'Orfeo
Kammerorchester Berlin, Solistenvereinigung des Berliner Rundfunks, Helmut Koch
Opera - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Cantate sur la mort de l'empereur Joseph II (Mono Version)
Edith Laux, Helmut Koch, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1954
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Telemann: Ino (Dramatische Solokantate)
Adele Stolte, Kammerorchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Religieuze cantates - Released by Eterna on 1 jan. 1971
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Brandenburg Concertos No. 4, 5 & 6 (Schätze der Klassik)
Helmut Koch & Kammerorchester Berlin
Symfonieën - Released by Berlin Classics on 18 aug. 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Unknown Masterworks, Vol. 4 (Volume 4)
Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Symfonische muziek - Released by Berlin Classics on 6 dec. 2019
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Ode à la paix & Concerto grosso, Op. 6 No. 10 (Mono Version)
Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Helmut Koch
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Wiegenlied in der Weihnacht / Die Hirten an der Krippe
Edith Jacob, Solistenvereinigung des Berliner Rundfunks, Helmut Koch
Kerstmuziek - Released by Eterna on 24 dec. 1960
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Anthologie de la musique chorale allemande, vol. 3: Contemporains (Mono Version)
Grossen Chor des Berliner Rundfunks, Helmut Koch
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Anthologie de la musique chorale allemande (Mono Version)
Rundfunkchor Berlin, Helmut Koch
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo