On its latest CD, Capella Jenensis presents a fascinating insight into the unique musical landscape of Thuringia during the Baroque period. The diversity of the small states of Thuringia is reflected in the works of several outstanding composers who received their artistic inspiration from all over Europe in the court chapels of this region. The ensemble performs works by Andreas Oswald, Christian Herwich, Adam Drese, Johann Krieger, Johann Michael Nicolai and others. The recording presents previously unpublished pieces from the Gothaer Partiturbuch Ludwig, the Dübensammlung Uppsala and other important manuscripts and thus offers a unique listening experience and a vivid picture of the musical diversity of the Baroque period in Thuringia.

Die Chöre am Mainzer Dom präsentieren ein zauberhaftes Album mit Weihnachtsliedern, die eigens von Thomas Gabriel arrangiert wurden. Gabriel ist bekannt für seine einfühlsame Stilistik, die traditionelle Weihnachtsklänge mit modernen Nuancen verwebt. Seine Arrangements verleihen den Liedern eine zeitgemäße Note, ohne dabei die klassische Schönheit der Originalkompositionen zu verlieren. Dies gibt dem Album eine besondere künstlerische Tiefe und macht es zu einem unvergesslichen Hörerlebnis während der festlichen Saison. Ein festliches Weihnachtsalbum mit dem Mainzer Domchor, der Mainzer Domkantorei, dem Mädchenchor am Dom und St. Quintin unter der Leitung von Domkantor Michael Kaltenbach und dem Mainzer Domorchester unter der Gesamtleitung von Domkapellmeister Karsten Storck.

"Christmas Around the World" ist bereits das zweite gemeinsame Album des Knabenchors Hannover und des Blechbläserensembles London Brass, mit vielen vertrauten Advents- und Weihnachtsliedern in neuem Gewand.

Christmas carols sung by the Thomanerchor Leipzig are far more than just musical performances. They are a cultural heritage, a spiritual experience and a symbol of the continuity of the Christmas tradition. The meaning these carols have in the festive season is profound and touches the hearts of the listeners in a special way.

Georg Friedrich Händels Messiah wurde am 13. April 1742 erstmals in Dublin aufgeführt und danach mehrmals umgearbeitet. Doch es existiert eine frühere Fassung von 1741, die auf den beiden autographen Partituren des Komponisten basiert. Der Musikwissenschaftler Malcolm Bruno hat diese Urfassung rekonstruiert. So agiert hier nun ein eigenständiger Holzbläsersatz aus zwei Oboen und Fagotten, und auch bei den Arien kann man Neues entdecken. Bruno ist von der Ersteinspielung des „Ur-Messiah“ begeistert und hoff t, „dass der Zuhörer die Erfahrung macht, den Messiah so zu hören, als ob er zum allerersten Mal aufgeführt würde, als ob die Tinte von Händels Manuskript noch feucht wäre.“ George Frideric Handel‘s Messiah was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742 and subsequently reworked several times. However, an earlier version from 1741 exists, based on the composer‘s two autograph scores. The musicologist Malcolm Bruno has reconstructed this original version and published it with Breitkopf & Härtel. In this version, an independent woodwind section consisting of two oboes and bassoons can be heard, and there are also new discoveries to be made in the arias. Bruno is enthusiastic about the first recording of the „Ur-Messiah“ and hopes „that the listener has the experience of hearing the Messiah as if for a fi rst time, as if the ink of Handel’s manuscript were still wet“.

The Deutscher Kammerchor with its conductor Rainer Held present the world's first album exclusively with works by the Swiss composer Markus Fricker (*1943). The album shows the versatility and range of this composer, who is very well known and highly popular in Switzerland and has already won numerous prizes for his works. It contains sacred and secular pieces, arrangements of folk songs from various countries as well as original compositions for mixed choir and men's choir. Fricker does not rely on rhythmic or even arhythmic avant-garde, but wants to create a tangible sense of togetherness with his music, especially for the listeners who sing in a choir themselves.

Founded in 1212, the Thomanerchor Leipzig, or St. Thomas Choir of Leipzig, is an ensemble of male student vocalists, ranging in age from nine to 18 years old. Its most famous director, or Thomaskantor, was Johann Sebastian Bach, and his choral works are central to the choir's repertoire. The Thomanerchor performs Gregorian chants and other liturgical music at services in the Thomaskirche, and also gives concerts across Germany. The choir lives in the Thomasalumnat on Hiller Street, and attends courses at the Thomasschule, concentrating on music.

The internationally sought-after Swedish lutenist Magnus Andersson undertakes a musical journey to 16th century Nuremberg with these world premiere recordings. Songs, dances and chansons, but also intavolations of sacred music by Adolf Blindhamer, Hans Gerle, Michael Eysertt as well as Hans, Conrad and Melchior Newsidler evoke the feeling of strolling through the bustling streets of the Renaissance city; the city where for almost a whole century an impressive amount of books for the lute were published, some with highly virtuosic arrangements from the hands of the most famous composers of the time.

The Thuringian Bach Collegium revives the musical gems of the Thuringian residences. The musical state of Thuringia holds a unique treasure of compositions from the time of the Thuringian residences. In the 17th and 18th centuries, with all its courts and residences competing in the arts, Thuringia was at the heart of Germany’s musical landscape, and the »Bache« or Bachs, Johann Sebastian Bach’s ancestors and relatives, became synonymous with it. The name Bach even became the name given to the profession of a musician.

This first complete recording of the rarely performed Naples version of Claudio Monteverdi‘s L‘incoronazione di Poppea examines the familiar story about love, seduction and power from a new perspective, and enthrals with its passion and gusto. Both the music and text differ from the earlier, ‘Venice’ version from 1643 in many places, enabling the story of Poppea and the Emperor Nero to be experienced in a fresh and thrilling way. Beautifully played on historical instruments by the Cantus Firmus Consort under the direction of Andreas Reize, who is the new Thomaskantor in Leipzig since September 2021, this elaborate CD production was created within the framework of the production at Waldegg Castle / Solothurn in summer 2021.

Music by Schoenberg, Mauersberger, Schütz, Hassler, Gjeilo, and Mahler Angels intermediaries between the visible and the invisible world arent always easily heard and seen. But when musical settings of texts give them expression and sound, they are there: in history and in the present, in war and in peace. Making this heard requires a high level of artistic skill, a solid sense of style, fine distinction and shaping of sound, as well as a sincere intensity in singing.