Bach's St. Mark Passion was based on a text by Christian Friedrich Henrici and created using existing works. It was first performed in Leipzig in March 1731 and then revised for the Holy Week of 1744. The autograph score is lost, but recent musicological research shows that some pieces like the Funeral Ode BWV198 or an aria from the Cantata BWV 54 had been recycled. Every performance is thus a reconstruction by the performing artist. Jordi Savall offers his own vision, made of subtle chiaroscuro, suffused with serenity and meditation.

Classical Music

Johann Sebastian Bach composed six cantatas for the Christmas holidays in 1734, to have one performed for each particular holiday during services in the main churches of Leipzig, St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. Both the narrative march of the Gospel and the tonality in which the musical framework was composed, give the cantatas a character of an autonomous cycle that Jordi Savall and his groups face for the first time

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Juditha Triumphans is the only survivor of the four oratorios that Vivaldi is known to have composed. The work was commissioned to celebrate the victory of the Republic of Venice over the Turks during the siege of Corfu. The oratorio marks the climax of Vivaldi's vocal production. The great beauty of it's arias and choral parts, the compact dramatic quality of it's recitatives and the richness of instrumentation all single it out as one of the most intense and fascinating examples of the genre. As you have come to expect from Jordi Savall, the booklet is lavishly illustrated and contains the full libretto translated in six languages.

This program brings together the most beautiful songs and dances from the ancient Cypriot traditions, a rediscovery of forgotten repertoires performed by island singers and instrumentalists, along with musicians from Greece and Turkey, all selected and directed by Dimitri Psonis. Music maintained through ancient oral traditions, illustrating the rich diversity of this ancient culture through a lively recreation that is faithful to both the traditions and modernity of the island. This miracle is possible thanks to artists who, with their exhaustive knowledge of the oral traditions that have been transmitted from generation to generation, give new life to these songs of love, disturbing lullabies and dances full of enthusiasm and vitality. In this way we experience the deep and mysterious link between history, art and life.

Classical Music

Over the last 15 years, Jordi Savall has been exploring the links between Western and Eastern repertoires because he regards this work as a way to develop a better mutual understanding. On Oriente Lux, Hesp�rion XXI plays alongside the ensemble Orpheus 21, created by him in the wake of the recent migrant crisis to welcome musicians from countries stricken by war, hunger or disasters to draw attention to the dignity shared of all humankind. The idea - prevailing during the Middle Ages - of a light coming from the East, Oriente Lux, is actualized on this recording with the fruitful encounter of repertoires from Syria, Bangladesh, Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Greece, Lebanon, Irak, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey.