Verdi: The Requiem – and what else?
The Messa da Requiem is truly Verdi’s most impressice work, but due to the size of the needed ensemble it can hardly be performed. Besides this milestone, Verdi created only a few other sacred works.
Personalities
We take a look at fascinating biographies, or report on particular aspects in the works of Bach, Mozart or Mendelssohn, Matsushita, Miškinis or Močnik. And we present the performers on our CD label, such as Frieder Bernius and the Stuttgart Kammerchor, Hans-Christoph Rademann and the Gaechinger Cantorey, and Calmus Ensemble. As well as this, you will get to meet our editors who report on their editions published by Carus - all true experts of choral music.
Symphonic principles in Bruckner’s unaccompanied works
Bruckner’s symphonic works are sufficiently covered in the literature. On the other hand, his a cappella choral works eke out a shadowy existence and are usually treated only as by-products. Very wrongly, as choral conductor Jan Schumacher finds, who – also in view of the Bruckner anniversary year 2024 – has dealt with this aspect of the Austrian composer’s oeuvre for his contribution.
Hochfürstl. Sächsisch-Weißenfelsischer würklicher Capellmeister
Johann Sebastian Bach’s secular cantatas provide an exciting insight into his activities between city and court, between the beginning of the Enlightenment and absolutism. Activities which probably characterized a successful life back then, but seem slightly strange to us now, perhaps even disconcerting. Uwe Wolf has researched the circumstances surrounding the composition of Bach’s wonderful Hunting Cantata, and went on the trail of Bach in Weissenfels. Come along with us!
George Frideric Handel: well connected in Great Britain
Although George Frideric Handel was born in 1685 in Halle an der Saale, he is now admired above all as an English composer. But he was a cosmopolitan. He travelled with enthusiasm throughout Europe and lived in several different cities. In 1710, he moved to London. Here he devoted himself first and foremost to studying the English language, music, and culture – but he also composed constantly and very successfully. But read for yourself!
Gripped by Every Measure
Frieder Bernius’ very first radio recording and his second LP recording in the mid-1970s were devoted to Mendelssohn’s works. So he was as enthusiastic about the idea of a complete recording as he is gripped by almost every measure of this composer’s work.
Katarina Pustinek Rakar
The Slovenian composer Katarina Pustinek Rakar (b. 1979) studied music theory, oboe, singing, and composition in Ljubljana. She is actively involved with the best Slovenian choirs, is a member of the Slovenian Philharmonic Choir, and teaches sol-fa and music theory at the Ljubljana Conservatory. Her compositions comprise mainly vocal music (children’s songs, works for youth, women’s, male voice, and mixed choirs), and she is regularly commissioned to write for these groups.
Camille Saint-Saëns’ Musique religieuse
Curtain up for Saint-Saëns, whose 100th anniversary of death is in December 2021! The composes’ oeuvre encompasses virtually all of the musical genres of his time. The Latin Oratorio de Noël in particular has taken a place among the canon of Christmas oratorios. But his choral output ranges from short choral pieces, often with organ accompaniment, to large-scale liturgical genres and oratorios – and large-scale means really large-scale. Learn more!
Josef Gabriel Rheinberger’s Musica Sacra
Church music was particularly dear to the Liechtenstein composer Josef Gabriel Rheinberger. But he was not a follower of the prevalent Cecilianism movement of his time. He strove instead for emotional warmth and sensuality in his musical language, rather than serene austerity. In his works he found his own individual sound, combining traditional structures with tension-laden harmonic writing in equal measure. Read more!
The Life and Works of Louis Vierne
In 2020, we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of the composer and organist Louis Vierne whose life was not only marked by artistic success but also by health problems and personal misfortune. Above all, his impaired sight from birth would prove to be a heavy burden throughout his life which he countered through his active career as an organist and composer. Works for the organ predominate in his extensive oeuvre, but also his vocal works are of great appeal.
Gaining insight into the personality of Johann Sebastian Bach
What do we actually know about the personality of Bach over beyond the idealization of the Cantor of St. Thomas and even deification? It is only possible to compile cautious assumptions about his personal manner with the aid of sparse surviving comments by himself or his contemporaries. Some of his secular cantatas depicting the social life of his time hint at humorous and light-hearted character traits.
