More Bach by Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Johann Sebastian Bach, Wilhelm Friedemann Bach

Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg | Jürgen Groß

More Bach

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Challenge Classics
UPC: 0608917296020
Catnr: CC 72960
Release date: 21 April 2023
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Label
Challenge Classics

UPC
0608917296020

Catalogue number
CC 72960

Release date
21 April 2023

"How the performance of baroque music has changed! Jürgen Groß's splendid ensemble plays with the same type of phrasing adopted in performances with modern instruments. There are no antiquarian affectations, bleating sounds, held notes, exaggerated rhythmic bursts, sleepy slowness. The beautiful, soft pastel sound given by the original instruments remains."

Amadeus, 01-4-2024

Album

Artist(s)

Composer(s)

Press

About the album

During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Bach family with its many branches occupied an exceptional position in Central German music life. Over several decades, its members were guarantors of high musical quality at numerous princely courts as well as at ecclesiastical and municipal institutions.

Among Bach’s best-known works written in Köthen are six instrumental concertos which the Kapellmeister dedicated in March 1721 to Margrave Christian Ludwig von Brandenburg, resulting in the title which is commonly used today, the “Brandenburg Concertos”. Stylistically, these works form part of the so-called “group concerto”, which was particularly popular in Germany. In this concerto genre different solo instruments are combined with each other, thus producing very different colours within one concerto.

In Brandenburg Concerto No 5 in D major (BWV1050), the transverse flute, violin and harpsichord take on the solo parts.

Brandenburg Concerto No 3 in G major (BWV1048), on the other hand, is entirely dedicated to string instruments. Three violins, three violas and three cellos form a trichoral structure above the continuo.

Bach was eventually appointed as Thomaskantor in the spring of 1723. In this new post, Bach was primarily responsible for composing and directing church music. Despite this workload, Bach also managed to find time in his Leipzig years to devote himself to instrumental music, including concertos. The Violin Concerto in A minor (BWV1041) survives as a set of parts from around 1730, which Bach almost certainly made for his Leipzig Collegium musicum.

The eldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann, is widely regarded as Johann Sebastian Bach’s “favourite son”, whose career he followed with particular paternal love and concern. He obtained his first position in 1733 as organist at the Sophienkirche in Dresden.
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach’s Sinfonia in F major (Fk 67) for string orchestra was almost certainly written during his Dresden tenure.

Friedemann’s brother Carl Philipp Emanuel, four years his junior, also received his musical training from their father. It was the diplomat and music lover Gottfried van Swieten who encouraged Bach in 1773 to write new symphonies in which the composer could “let himself go completely without taking into account the difficulties that might necessarily arise for the performance”. They are characterised by rhetorical dynamics, great contrasts and often bizarre motifs, bearing witness to the unstoppable inventiveness of their creator.

Dit album van het Elbipolis Barockorchester en violist Jürgen Groß is geheel gewijd aan de familie Bach. Naast twee Brandenburgse concerten en het eerste vioolconcert van Johann Sebastian Bach bevat de opname twee symfonieën van zijn meest begaafde zonen: Wilhelm Friedmann en Carl Philipp Emanuel.

Het Elbipolis Barockorchester ziet zichzelf als de poort naar de wereld, vandaar de naam Elbipolis, Stad aan de Elbe, zoals de grote Hanzehaven in Hamburg, thuishaven van het orkest, wordt genoemd. Kenmerkend voor het orkest is de frisse aanpak, de sprankelende klank en dat zonder enige poespas en met respect voor de partituur.

In de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw nam de familie Bach met al haar familietakken een uitzonderingspositie in in het muziekleven van Midden-Duitsland. Decennialang speelden de leden van de familie Bach voor vele vorstenhuizen en kerkelijke en gemeentelijke instellingen en stonden ze garant voor hun hoge muzikale kwaliteiten.

Tot Bachs bekendste werken, die hij in zijn tijd als kapelmeester in Köthen schreef, behoren zes instrumentale concerten die Bach in maart 1721 opdroeg aan markgraaf Christian Ludwig von Brandenburg. Dat resulteerde in de titel die we tegenwoordig algemeen gebruiken: de ‘Brandenburgse concerten’. Stilistisch gezien maken deze werken deel uit van het zogenaamde concerto grosso, dat vooral in Duitsland populair was. In dit concerto genre worden verschillende solo-instrumenten met elkaar gecombineerd, waardoor binnen één concert zeer verschillende klankkleuren ontstaan.

Het Brandenburgs Concert Nr. 3 in G majeur (BWV1048) op dit album is geheel gewijd aan strijkinstrumenten. Drie violen, drie altviolen en drie cello's vormen een trichorale structuur boven het continuo. In het Brandenburgs Concert nr. 5 in D majeur (BWV1050) daarentegen nemen dwarsfluit, viool en klavecimbel de solopartijen op zich.

In het voorjaar van 1723 werd Bach benoemd tot Thomascantor in Leipzig. In deze nieuwe functie was Bach voornamelijk verantwoordelijk voor het componeren en regisseren van kerkmuziek. Ondanks deze werklast wist Bach in zijn Leipziger jaren nog tijd te vinden om zich te wijden aan instrumentale muziek, waaronder concerto's. Het Vioolconcert in a mineur (BWV1041) is bewaard gebleven als een reeks delen van rond 1730, die Bach vrijwel zeker maakte voor zijn Leipzig Collegium musicum.

Bachs oudste zoon, Wilhelm Friedemann, wordt algemeen beschouwd als zijn favoriete zoon, wiens carrière Bach met bijzondere vaderlijke liefde en zorg volgde. Wilhelm Friedemanns eerste aanstelling verkreeg hij in 1733 als organist aan de Sophienkirche in Dresden. Zijn Sinfonia in F majeur (Fk 67) voor strijkorkest is vrijwel zeker geschreven tijdens zijn ambtstermijn in Dresden.

Ook Friedemanns vier jaar jongere broer Carl Philipp Emanuel, kreeg zijn muzikale opleiding van vader Bach. Het was de diplomaat en muziekliefhebber Gottfried van Swieten, die Carl Philipp Emanuel in 1773 aanmoedigde om nieuwe symfonieën te schrijven waarin de componist zich ‘volledig kon laten gaan zonder rekening te houden met de moeilijkheden die zich onontkomelijk voor de uitvoering zouden kunnen voordoen’. De symfonieën worden gekenmerkt door retorische dynamiek, grote contrasten en vaak bizarre motieven, die getuigen van de onstuitbare inventiviteit van hun schepper.

Im 17. und 18. Jahrhundert nahm die Familie Bach mit ihren zahlreichen Zweigen eine Sonderstellung im mitteldeutschen Musikleben ein. Über mehrere Jahrzehnte hinweg waren ihre Mitglieder Garanten für hohe musikalische Qualität an zahlreichen Fürstenhöfen sowie kirchlichen und städtischen Einrichtungen.
Zu den bekanntesten Werken Bachs, die in Köthen entstanden sind, gehören sechs Instrumentalkonzerte, die der Kapellmeister im März 1721 dem Markgrafen Christian Ludwig von Brandenburg widmete, woraus sich der heute gebräuchliche Titel "Brandenburgische Konzerte" ergab. Stilistisch gehören diese Werke zum so genannten "Gruppenkonzert", das vor allem in Deutschland beliebt war. Bei dieser Konzertgattung werden verschiedene Soloinstrumente miteinander kombiniert, so dass innerhalb eines Konzerts sehr unterschiedliche Klangfarben entstehen.
Im Brandenburgischen Konzert Nr. 5 in D-Dur (BWV1050) übernehmen die Querflöte, die Violine und das Cembalo die Solopartien.
Das Brandenburgische Konzert Nr. 3 in G-Dur (BWV1048) hingegen ist ganz den Streichinstrumenten gewidmet. Drei Violinen, drei Bratschen und drei Celli bilden eine trichorale Struktur über dem Continuo.
Im Frühjahr 1723 wurde Bach schließlich zum Thomaskantor ernannt. In diesem neuen Amt war Bach vor allem für die Komposition und Leitung der Kirchenmusik zuständig. Trotz dieses Arbeitspensums fand Bach in seinen Leipziger Jahren auch Zeit, sich der Instrumentalmusik zu widmen, unter anderem mit Konzerten. Das Violinkonzert in a-Moll (BWV1041) ist als Stimmensatz aus der Zeit um 1730 erhalten, den Bach mit ziemlicher Sicherheit für sein Leipziger Collegium musicum angefertigt hat.
Der älteste Sohn, Wilhelm Friedemann, gilt weithin als Johann Sebastian Bachs "Lieblingssohn", dessen Werdegang er mit besonderer väterlicher Liebe und Sorge verfolgte. Seine erste Anstellung erhielt er 1733 als Organist an der Sophienkirche in Dresden.
Wilhelm Friedemann Bachs Sinfonia in F-Dur (Fk 67) für Streichorchester entstand mit ziemlicher Sicherheit während seiner Dresdner Amtszeit.
Friedemanns vier Jahre jüngerer Bruder Carl Philipp Emanuel erhielt seine musikalische Ausbildung ebenfalls von seinem Vater. Es war der Diplomat und Musikliebhaber Gottfried van Swieten, der Bach 1773 ermutigte, neue Sinfonien zu schreiben, in denen sich der Komponist "ohne Rücksicht auf die Schwierigkeiten, die sich bei der Aufführung notwendigerweise ergeben werden", völlig austoben konnte. Sie zeichnen sich durch rhetorische Dynamik, große Kontraste und oft bizarre Motive aus und zeugen von dem unaufhaltsamen Erfindungsreichtum ihres Schöpfers.

Artist(s)

Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg

A baroque orchestra at the gateway to the world: this is how Elbipolis sees itself. It is no coincidence that the ensemble is named after the great Hanseatic port it calls home: Elbipolis – City on the Elbe. Hamburg. The musicians of the orchestra – all specialists in baroque music – demonstrate their zeal for new musical discoveries in projects that reach beyond the boundaries of standard repertoire, and they have been rewarded with success and accolades from connoisseurs and enthusiasts. From guest appearances at the Kölner Philharmonie or on the North German Radio (NDR) programme “Das Alte Werk” to regular performances at the Handel Festivals in Halle and Göttingen, at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, or in the halls of the...

The musicians of the orchestra – all specialists in baroque music – demonstrate their zeal for new musical discoveries in projects that reach beyond the boundaries of standard repertoire, and they have been rewarded with success and accolades from connoisseurs and enthusiasts. From guest appearances at the Kölner Philharmonie or on the North German Radio (NDR) programme “Das Alte Werk” to regular performances at the Handel Festivals in Halle and Göttingen, at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, or in the halls of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Elbipolis is by now a well-established presence on German concert stages. The ensemble is also internationally sought-after: extensive concert tours across Europe have led Elbipolis to the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels and the West Cork Music Festival in Ireland, among others. At the invitation of the Goethe Institute, the orchestra has toured to Brazil and Southeast Asia. Passion for the musical history of one’s own region and a cosmopolitan worldview are not mutually exclusive. Both the identification of this Hamburg ensemble with the repertoire of its city as well as its openness to unconventional programmes have shaped its discography. Its debut CD Don Quichotte in Hamburg (2007), featuring music by Georg Philipp Telemann, Johann Mattheson, and Francesco Bartolomeo Conti, was warmly received by listeners and critics alike; subsequent productions

with similarly close ties to the ensemble’s home city include the CD Musik der Hamburger Pfeffersäcke (2008) and a recording of Johann Christian Schieferdecker’s Musicalischen Concerte (2011). In 2013, Elbipolis released Undercover Bach, an album of arrangements and original versions of orchestral suites and concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach. Its next CD, Sinfonies pour les soupers du Roy (2016), offered reconstructions of instrumental suites that had been composed by Michel-Richard Delalande (1657–1726) for the Sun King Louis XIV. These works have only survived to the present day in the form of a partition réduite, but Jörg Jacobi’s reconstruction of the missing parts has allowed modern listeners to hear this music for the first time in its full five-voice setting, as intended by the composer but only implicit in the reduced original score.

Alongside its work as a purely instrumental ensemble, Elbipolis performs in opera productions and choral projects with equal parts passion and dedication. The ensemble as a large orchestra has collaborated with Philipp Ahmann (NDR Choir) and the sopranos Nuria Rial and Deborah York, among others. Elbipolis takes a special interest in cultivating enthusiasm for early music in younger audiences. In 2008, the ensemble established the highly successful concert series “Baroque Lounge”, in which it collaborated with Brezel Göring (Stereo Total), Johannes Malfatti, Tim Exile, DJ Ipek, and other leading artists of the electronic music scene. For other ensembles and event organisers, this innovative format has come to serve as a model of how traditional concert formats can further evolve. In 2020, Elbipolis was awarded funding from the Federal Commissioner for Culture and Media (Neustart Kultur) for “Aus der Tiefe”, a Germany-wide concert series featuring cantatas by J. S. Bach. A new round of grants in 2022 enabled the realisation of the follow-up project “Mehr Bach!”, comprising a concert tour through northern Germany and the recording of the present disc.

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Jürgen Groß (violin)

Jürgen Gross studied violin and music pedagogy with Isabella Petrosjan in his hometown of Hamburg. His intense interest in the baroque violin led him to studies with Thomas Albert at the University of the Arts in Bremen and later to the Institute for Early Music in Trossingen. In 1999, he founded the Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg, with which he performs extensively throughout Germany and beyond. In recent years, the ensemble has toured to Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, France, Czechia, Brazil, and southeast Asia. Jürgen Groß is also regularly active as a coach and guest concertmaster for baroque and classical projects, for example at the Orchestra Academy of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival or at the University of Music in Nuremberg.

Jürgen Gross studied violin and music pedagogy with Isabella Petrosjan in his hometown of Hamburg. His intense interest in the baroque violin led him to studies with Thomas Albert at the University of the Arts in Bremen and later to the Institute for Early Music in Trossingen.

In 1999, he founded the Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg, with which he performs extensively throughout Germany and beyond. In recent years, the ensemble has toured to Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, France, Czechia, Brazil, and southeast Asia.

Jürgen Groß is also regularly active as a coach and guest concertmaster for baroque and classical projects, for example at the Orchestra Academy of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival or at the University of Music in Nuremberg.

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Composer(s)

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth. Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

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Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

It can't be easy to have been a son of the great Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach was undoubtedly very strict, and if you'd have any composition ambitions, you would have to find a way to step out of the shadow of your father. Luckily, his sons had everything going for them considering their music. Whereas the traditional Baroque music of their father slowly went out of fashion, most of Bach's sons managed to follow the new trends of the early Classicism. In other words: relatively simple, melodic music which is not too heavy on the listener, yet still very passionate. Carl Philipp Emanuel, Bach's fifth son, became the most outstanding among his siblings. Like each of Bach's sons, he received a...

Carl Philipp Emanuel, Bach's fifth son, became the most outstanding among his siblings. Like each of Bach's sons, he received a solid education from his father, en Carl Philipp developed into a remarkably talented keyboardist. Moreover, he became a prolific composer and of all Bach's sons, he was able to came closest to the quality of his father's work, albeit in a completely different style.

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Wilhelm Friedemann Bach

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach was a German keyboardist and composer. He was the oldest son of Johann Sebastian Bach and Maria Barbara Bach. He worked in Dresden, Halle, Braunschweig, and finally Berlin. He was regarded as one of the greatest organist of his time and is renowned for his organ improvisations. In Halle, the Wilhelm-Friedemann-Bach-Haus is named after him; a museum dedicated to him and six other composers of his time, in a house where he used to live. Wilhelm Friedemann's music shows the same 'architectual' proficiency known from his father, particular in his counter point. Moreover, he was looking for new ways of expression, with many mood swings and changes in rhythm, Wilhelm Friedemann was clearly an exponent of a new literal and...

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Press

How the performance of baroque music has changed! Jürgen Groß's splendid ensemble plays with the same type of phrasing adopted in performances with modern instruments. There are no antiquarian affectations, bleating sounds, held notes, exaggerated rhythmic bursts, sleepy slowness. The beautiful, soft pastel sound given by the original instruments remains.
Amadeus, 01-4-2024

It is a good disc, well performed. The sound quality is excellent, and the playing very clear and precise. The interpretation of the phrases in all of the works is well outlined, and nothing is really mechanical, as one would expect if this were simply tossed off.
Fanfare Magazine, 01-11-2023