Various Artists - FR2 - SUPER-AUDIO CD [Super Audio CD (SACD)]

During the nineteenth century Berlin quickly developed from a muddy provincial backwater into a metropolis of world rank. Things went upward at the same pace in the arts and culture, and at their summit Wilhelm Sauer built his magnificent organ, which was dedicated along with the Berlin Cathedral in 1905. Cathedral organist Andreas Sieling has mined some choice nuggets of Berlin organ music from this extremely productive period, including some premiere recordings and an old Berlin hit in a really surprising recording. Mendelssohn of course is a must. The Three Preludes and Fugues op. 37 by this composer who spent his formative years in Berlin are the oldest selections on this lovingly produced Super Audio album. Mendelssohn received instruction in organ from the St. Mary's organist August Wilhelm Bach, who exerted unrivalled influence on Berlin's church music over the decades. Otto Dienel was also a Bach pupil; for his popular InchOrgan RecitalsInch at midday he skillfully linked classical forms such as the chorale setting with programmatic tones. Today Franz Wagner, August Haupt, and Philipp Rüfer will hardly ring a bell, even among organ experts. However, all three were very successful during their times. Haupt's Concert Fugue, recorded here for the first time, circulated from hand to hand as a copy until a former pupil in the United States had it published. Rüfer was also in great demand as a teacher; Karl Straube and Albert Becker numbered among his pupils. Andreas Sieling has a full musical arsenal available to him on InchhisInch Sauer organ 113 stops on four manuals and the pedal enable him to produce unmatched sound color. The outstandingly designed pneumatic action guarantees virtuosic playing even amid heavy-duty chords, and the velvety rich sound of this masterful instrument especially finely brings out the quality of the compositions. Details 1. Präl

Following a series of military and economic defeats in the early 19th century, an enterprising group of teachers, pastors and writers set about to revive the Danish national spirit. Out of this environment the unique Danish tradition of the InchfolkehøjskoleInch (InchFolk High SchoolInch) was born. The lofty goal of these institutions was to provide life-long popular education, a sense of national pride and civic responsibility for the common person. The movement's chief architect, the poet, philosopher, and pastor, N. F. S. Grundtvig knew full well the value of singing for creating a sense of community, so naturally, a new demand for Danish songs was created. In 1894, the first Højskolesangbogen (High School Songbook) was published. A substantial revised edition was published in 1922, including many melodies by the famous composer Carl Nielsen. Today the collection includes 572 songs with 2.4 million copies sold and is the most popular songbook in the country to this day. The natural choice for performing this Treasury of Danish Song is, the internationally acclaimed Danish National Vocal Ensemble, the elite choir of the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR). With two Grammy nominations and the prestigious German ECHO Award for the album The Nightingale, (recorded with recorder virtuoso Michala Petri), the French Diapason d'Or de l'année, in addition to a host of other national and international accolades, their luminous sound provides the perfect frame for these simple, heartfelt expressions of the Danish soul.

The Greek soprano Fanie Antonelou and German pianist Kerstin Mörk here join forces in an exciting project, entitled 'Affinities'. In a carefully constructed sequence of 23 songs, they explore the kinship between Greek and German art songs - a varied one, filtered through friendships, family connections and teacher-pupil relationships. All the composers represented on the album studied and/or worked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the three great German-speaking musical centres - Vienna, Munich and Berlin - and include figures both well known (Schoenberg, Weill, Skalkottas and Mitropoulos) and less familiar (Emilios Riadis, Dimitrios Lialios, Ludwig Thuille). With twelve composers and even more poets involved, the subject matter of the individual songs is diverse indeed - from a café scene in Berlin (Der Abschiedsbrief by Kurt Weill in cabaret mode) to a hymn to Aphrodite, set by Dimitri Mitropoulos in a highly expressionistic free atonal idiom inspired by Schoenberg.