Archiv Produktion

From a repertoire which spans over four centuries, Czech mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená makes no great secret of her love for eighteenth and even seventeenth century music, as evidenced by this new record turning around Monteverdi and some of his contemporary pieces. With her debut role of passionate and heartbreaking Ottavia in The Coronation of Poppea back in 2000 seeing her replace Anne Sofie von Otter. It is, then, only normal that she offers two great moments of this masterpiece, "Disprezzata Regina" and "Addio Roma", one of the most inspired and modern tunes of Monteverdi. Ottone not quite satisfying the mezzo-soprano, she also offers the final duet "Pur ti miro” of the opera in the role of Nero, and alongside soprano Anna Prohaska. Another huge Monteverdi piece with “Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clodinda”. Motets from Monteverdi, instrumentals by Marini, Ucellini and Merula; here is a truly beautiful album on which you will also have the pleasure of hearing wonderful baroque ensemble La Cetra Andrea Marcon. recorded in November 2014 in Sankt German Seewen (Switzerland) church. © SM/Qobuz

Only two of the three composers named Praetorius on this Archiv release are related; Jacob was the son of Hieronymus, while Michael, known mostly for his small dances, was from a different family. But all the music was written between the very end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th, and it is more or less consistent in style. The real appeal of the program is its thematic consistency: although there are a couple of large Magnificat settings, most of the rest is devoted to motets on passages from the Song of Songs, the sexy part of the Bible. At least some were written for weddings connected with the composers themselves, and they respond to the texts in personal, warm, and even humorous ways. Put that together with the fact that all this music is virtually unknown, and it's easy to see why conductor Pablo Heras-Casado is one of the hottest new presences on the early music conducting scene. He gets a precise, lively sound from the only moderately prominent Balthasar-Neumann-Chor und Ensemble of Freiburg, and he is backed by excellent studio sound from the revived Archiv label, which is quickly living down its predecessor's reputation for stodginess. A superb early German Baroque recording. © TiVo

Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani has gained a reputation for original programming combined with a gripping technical intensity, and in this respect Time Present and Time Past does not disappoint. Esfahani takes up the common idea of drawing parallels between Baroque and minimalist styles, but he offers unusual material on each end and focuses the listener on individual compositional treatments rather than simply on motor rhythms and broadly sectional construction. On the Baroque end he offers three variation treatments of the old "La Follia" ground, by Alessandro Scarlatti, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (who manages to work some Sturm und Drang into the picture) and Francesco Geminiani, arranging the work of Vivaldi. The minimalist works fit convincingly with these, and the Harpsichord Concerto, Op. 40 (1980), of Henryk Górecki is a little-heard work whose heavy harpsichord rhythms have a monumental sound. For his own transcription of Steve Reich's Piano Phase, Esfahani plays both piano parts via multitracking and achieves some nifty acoustic results. The use of a pair of powerful mid-18th century harpsichords adds to the overall effect, as does excellent sound, for which the revived Archiv branch of Deutsche Grammophon teams with Deutschlandfunk for a recording in its Cologne chamber music studio. The weak point here is the insertion of Baroque orchestral works (and no minimalist ones), which breaks the mood. The Bach Harpsichord Concerto in D minor, BWV 1052, adds nothing as a conclusion; even one of Bach's keyboard suites (or a Handel ground bass piece, one of which is apparently available on a download version of this album) would have been more relevant. Nevertheless, there's plenty to chew on here from one of the most daring figures in the modern harpsichord world. © TiVo

Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani has gained a reputation for original programming combined with a gripping technical intensity, and in this respect Time Present and Time Past does not disappoint. Esfahani takes up the common idea of drawing parallels between Baroque and minimalist styles, but he offers unusual material on each end and focuses the listener on individual compositional treatments rather than simply on motor rhythms and broadly sectional construction. On the Baroque end he offers three variation treatments of the old "La Follia" ground, by Alessandro Scarlatti, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (who manages to work some Sturm und Drang into the picture) and Francesco Geminiani, arranging the work of Vivaldi. The minimalist works fit convincingly with these, and the Harpsichord Concerto, Op. 40 (1980), of Henryk Górecki is a little-heard work whose heavy harpsichord rhythms have a monumental sound. For his own transcription of Steve Reich's Piano Phase, Esfahani plays both piano parts via multitracking and achieves some nifty acoustic results. The use of a pair of powerful mid-18th century harpsichords adds to the overall effect, as does excellent sound, for which the revived Archiv branch of Deutsche Grammophon teams with Deutschlandfunk for a recording in its Cologne chamber music studio. The weak point here is the insertion of Baroque orchestral works (and no minimalist ones), which breaks the mood. The Bach Harpsichord Concerto in D minor, BWV 1052, adds nothing as a conclusion; even one of Bach's keyboard suites (or a Handel ground bass piece, one of which is apparently available on a download version of this album) would have been more relevant. Nevertheless, there's plenty to chew on here from one of the most daring figures in the modern harpsichord world. © TiVo

From 1985 to 1992, Trevor Pinnock and his period ensemble, the English Concert, with the Choir of the English Concert, recorded an impressive series of albums devoted to the symphonies, concertos, and choral masterpieces of Franz Joseph Haydn, which were issued on the prestigious Archiv Produktion label. While many of these releases are available separately, this 2014 box set brings them all together in one convenient and affordable package. Pinnock's imaginative interpretations and the orchestra's lively playing make these genuinely exciting renditions, and they were among the earliest of historically informed performances to appear on a major label. Now that authentic period practices and original instrumentation are more commonly heard in Classical repertoire, the recordings may have lost some of their ability to surprise, but they have proved durable over time. Included are the early symphonies, "Le Matin," "Le Midi," and "Le Soir," the "Strum und Drang" symphonies of the middle period, the three violin concertos, the concertos for trumpet, oboe, and harpsichord, three masses, the Te Deum, and the Stabat Mater. This 12-CD set is a remarkable bargain for collectors and anyone interested in hearing Haydn played with brilliance. © TiVo

This release of Bach's well-explored violin concertos (plus a couple of arranged keyboard concertos) by Italian violinist Giuliano Carmignola delivers truth in advertising on its back cover: the violinist, playing a 1739 Guidantus and leading the historical-instrument ensemble Concerto Köln, "seems to cast fresh light on these much-loved masterpieces by imbuing them with all the joyfulness of his Venetian sound." What this means is that Bach is taken beyond even the vigorous Italian Vivaldi sound in vogue and into hoedown territory. It is absolutely something new and different, and it's hard to imagine Bach not being a bit startled by it. The fast movements are tumultuous and pushed to the edge in terms of tempo. Reactions to them will likely be entirely individual, and listeners might end up thinking that some of the concertos are enhanced or at least refracted in new directions by this approach, but that in others a certain Apollonian quality intrinsic to Bach is lost. Give Carmignola credit on a couple of counts: as fast and furious as things get, contrapuntal clarity is never lost, and in the slow movements he pours on an intensely lyrical quality that may also be unidiomatic, but will get to listeners if they let it. Carmignola is well supported by fine studio sound from the revived Archiv label, and in general this is the kind of album that gets points for sheer audacity. © TiVo