REVIEWS:
American Record Guide (11-12/97, p.111) - "...The recording was made in the church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Treviso, where the reverberation makes both instrumental and vocal tone rich and sumptuous....On the whole, it is a performance that is technically assured, well-paced, and coherent, with more a chamber than church music feel..."

Classical Music

The names Bach and Buxtehude are inextricably linked in that the young German was deeply influenced by the older Danish keyboard virtuoso and Werkmeister. In fact, following his visit to Denmark in 1705, he allowed that, in retrospect, he had gone to hear Buxtehude "in order to comprehend one thing and another about his art". That this is in itself rather striking commentary from arguably the greatest composer in the history of Western Classical Music cannot be denied and speaks volumes on the importance of Buxtehude in evaluating the early Baroque period.
Diapason d'Or winner Lars Ulrik Mortensen, well known for his collaborations with John Holloway and Jaap ter Linden, among others, brings to Buxtehude's music a unique blend of virtuosity and scholarship in the area of performance practice. His playing, while astonishingly accurate and controlled, never gives the impression of being a calculated affair. His informed music making is inspired and breathes fresh life into every bar of this oeuvre. Worthy of note is Mortensen's handling of the cadenza-like arpeggio section in the Prelude in G Major; the building effect is breathtaking, the resolution exultant.
Gramophone (1/00, p. 85) - "...[Mortensen] arranges his programmes
effectively to illustrate the wide range of Buxtehude's art, though the
contrapuntal facility that drew Bach to trudge 200 miles to hear him is
everywhere apparent....enthusiastically recommended..."

Lively, tonally varied performances … a very attractive sound.

This is volume two of the Naxos reissue of Lars Ulrik Mortensen’s Buxtehude series. It previously appeared on Dacapo. This particular volume was Dacapo 8.224117.

Mortensen is a fine musician, whose approach to Buxtehude is vivacious and dignified in equal proportions. His Buxtehude has both passion and seriousness - but not solemnity - of mind. Mortensen makes sparkling use of the resources of his instrument, a copy by Thomas Mandrup-Poulsen of an original by Ruckers. Though the notes to this present CD give no further details, it sounds like the beautifully-toned instrument, made in 1984, which Mortensen played on some of his Bach recordings (CPO 999 989-2) and Froberger (Kontrapunkt 32040). It sings delightfully – at least it does when played by Mortensen! The use of mean-tone tuning will surely disturb very few modern listeners.

The theme of the set of variations on More Palatino (not More Palantino as printed on the back cover) is a student drinking song, though the rather stately form in which Buxtehude presents it is not especially redolent of the tavern. Still, it is an attractive and melodically various set, Mortensen’s varying use of registration producing some charming effects and some insistently dancing rhythms. The same is true of a second set of variations played here, those on Courant Zimble – a title we might translate as ‘Simple Courante’, and aptly so, since it is an uncomplicated piece which invites – and gets – some direct and appealing variations from Buxtehude. Mortensen resists the temptation to over-inflate these or make any excessive claims for them.

Each of the two Suites is made up four movements, in the order Allemande-Courante-Sarabande-Gigue. In each work the allemande is the most substantial movement, considerably longer than any of the other three movements. The allemandes also tend to have a greater musical gravity, that which opens Bux WV 242 being particularly grand in manner and phrasing; the courantes have, by way of contrast, a rippling vitality, that in Bux WV 25 being full of pleasant twists and turns. Buxtehude’s sarabandes have a graceful simplicity about them, a quality heard to perfection in Mortensen’s performances of the two in these suites, especially that in the E minor suite, where the registration is beautifully judged and employed. The gigues of the two suites make more much use of counterpoint, especially in comparison to the simpler lines of the sarabandes which precede them. But these are by no means academic fugues and in both suites the final movements very forcefully remember the dance origins of the gigue.

All of the shorter pieces in this programme have their genuine attractions and all are well characterised by Mortensen. The chorale ‘Nun lob, mein Seel, den Herren’ is more often heard on the organ, although it makes no requirements that the harpsichord can’t fulfil – as Mortensen persuasively demonstrates. Indeed there is a particular sprightliness to this reading that is distinct from anything that can be achieved on the baroque organ and which offers an alternative, equally valid, view of the music. Bux WV 170, 171 and 174 are pieces which survive amongst the manuscripts of Buxtehude’s organ music but which, again, are eminently playable on the harpsichord. The fugal writing here is more ‘correct’ than in the gigues of the suites, but don’t let that make you imagine that these are unduly staid pieces. Here they have the same vivacity which characterises this programme as a whole and they are played with the same loving care for the aptness of instrumental sound and tone.

Without wanting to claim Mortensen’s as the ‘best’ recordings of Buxtehude’s harpsichord works – if one had to pick I suppose the vote might go to Ton Koopman – there is not the slightest reason to feel in any way dissatisfied with this fine recital. If you don’t know Buxtehude’s writing for harpsichord – this is an excellent value-for-money place to start; if you are already an aficionado of this repertoire you will surely be just as keen to add this to your collection.

-- Glyn Pursglove, MusicWeb International

The 19th, and penultimate, volume in Ton Koopman’s remarkable survey of Buxtehude’s Complete Works! This volume is also the ninth one in the series devoted to Buxtehude’s vocal works, with more gems to discover for all Baroque music lovers.

"Koopman varies them intelligently in this sequence of 10 numbers, and the performances have the unfussy directness that one associates with his music-making." - The Guardian

This is a Super Audio CD playable only on Super Audio CD players.

Includes work(s) for organ by Dietrich Buxtehude. Soloist: Hans Davidsson.

Includes work(s) for organ by Dietrich Buxtehude. Soloist: Julia Brown.

Dieterich Buxtehude’s chamber works today counts among the least known of his compositions. They were already forgotten soon after 1700, and this despite the fact that two third of Buxtehude’s chamber sonatas, unlike any other category in the composers creative output, were published during his lifetime. The publication of sonatas indicates that there was a market for this repertoire in the later 17th century. Moreover, the publication of two sets of such works suggests that the fame of the Lübeck master and the success of the first set must have created the demand for a second. However, the primary reason for these works getting out of fashion by the time of Buxtehude’s death was their unconventional instrumental scoring and, more importantly, the triumphant rise of the modern Italian trio sonata by Corelli, Albinoni, and others in the early 18th century. Buxtehude’s chamber music repertoire consists of altogether twenty-two works. All of Buxtehude’s chamber works present highly sophisticated compositions that belong among the most attractive and technically most demanding examples of the genre of ensemble sonata, then still in its infancy. They resemble in many ways the six sonatas of the Hortus musicus (Hamburg, 1688) by Buxtehude’s colleague and friend, Johann Adam Reinken, organist at St. Catherine’s Church in Hamburg. But like Reinken’s pieces, they were influenced by Italian models, especially the instrumental sonatas by the Venetian composer Giovanni Legrenzi (1626-1690), which were circulating widely also in Northern Europe. At the same time, they deeply reflect the improvisational, fanciful, expressive and colorful mannerisms of Buxtehude and his school, which the writer Johann Mattheson in1739 referred to as “stylus fantasticus”.

For this recording of music by Buxtehude, Jonathan Cohen, founder of the ensemble Arcangelo, is joined by a distinguished trio, including two regulars on the Alpha label, Sophie Gent and Thomas Dunford, alongside the gambist Jonathan Manson. Although Dietrich Buxtehude is famous above all for his organ music and cantatas, and for the long journey the young Bach undertook to meet him, his chamber music is virtually unknown. In the mid-1690s, at the height of his fame, Buxtehude published two collections in rapid succession, each comprising seven sonatas for violin, viola da gamba and basso continuo. It is the works of the first collection (1694) – designated Opus 1 in the print – that Arcangelo has recorded here. These sonatas are characterized by pronounced experimental features in both the scoring and the handling of the instruments.

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REVIEWS:

Arcangelo makes the most of Buxtehude’s highly imaginative counterpoint, at times emphasizing the arresting dissonances and dramatic cadences that will remind more than a few listeners of similar moments in Bach’s chamber music.

– All Music Guide

A factor that has allowed Arcangelo to be so adaptable is the ever-effective policy of employing to-rate musicians; and, with violinist Sophie Gent and gambist Jonathan Manson proving master of this music’s sometimes virtuoso demands and Thomas Dunford among the most sought-after continuo lutenists of the moment, the standards here are as high as ever.

– Gramophone

This exquisitely balanced recording instantly captures the sense of conversation between the instrumental parts, highlighting the egalitarian approach of Buxtehude's melodic writing. What's more, the content of these conversations allows us to glimpse the composer's esteemed artistic stature in miniature.

– BBC Music Magazine

This album is the final volume in the retrospective series featuring Finn Videro, undoubtedly the best Danish organist ever. This album features the legendary recordings on the 17th century Compenius organ together with the much sought after baroque German organ works. Also included is a rare live recording from Dallax, Texas from Videro’s teaching years. Viderø was born in Fuglebjerg, Næstved. He was the organist at the Reformed Church in Copenhagen from 1928 to 1941, the Jægersborg Church from 1942 to 1947, the Trinitatis Church in Copenhagen from 1947 to 1971 and St. Andreas Church in Copenhagen from 1971 to 1977. He was guest lecturer at Yale University and held an honorary doctorate from the University of Åbo in Finland. In 1933, he co-published with Oluf Ring a widely used organ primer. His organ playing was uncompromising and many believed that Viderø's musical interpretations were as close to the authentic, artistic and historical representation intended by the composer as one could get.

It is easy to imagine Dietrich Buxtehude’s enthusiasm when he received into his hands the texts to Membra Jesu Nostri, which has been ascribed to Bernard of Clairvaux. The text forms an account of the crucified limbs of Christ and its sensitive style relates strongly to sixteen and seventeenth century Pietism, the central focus of which is emotion and passionate expression. Membra Jesu Nostri has come to be known as Buxtehude’s possibly best vocal compilation, which is not surprising as it combines great intensity and fervor with his masterly ability to achieve vocal equilibrium in the most pleasing form. Solistensemblen Vox Scanienis has been active in the Malmo-Lund region for over 15 years. The ensemble was founded by Peter Wallin in connection with a television series production called Andetag (Breath) which was broadcast on Swedish television in 2002 and 2003. From the start the ensemble’s repertoire was comprised primarily by music from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, but with time it has extended to include both Gregorian chants and contemporary musical pieces by Arvo Part, Johan Magnus Sjoberg, Olivier Messiaen and others.

The Ensemble and Choir Marc’Antonio Ingegneri of Cremona conducted by Vatio Bissolati propose an interesting and inspired live performance of Membra Jesu Nostri BuxWV 75, a cycle of seven cantatas composed by Dietrich Buxtehude in 1680, known as the first Lutheran oratorio. The feet, knees, hands, side, chest, heart and face of the crucified Christ are interpreted allegorically in each of the seven cantatas, that follow the scheme “instrumental introduction (Sonata) – choral movement with biblical texts (Concerto) – vocal solo (aria) – repetition of the choral movement” (Concerto).

Ulla Kappel was for years the leading Danish authority on the music by Buxtehude and Danacord was lucky to make this early LP release where Ulla Kappel plays some of the masterworks for harpsichord by Buxtehude. It is now available for the first time in new digital transfer. Also included are a few bonus tracks with never before released recordings featuring the Hungarian master organist János Sebestyén in music he never recorded commercially before. A must for all! Ulla Kappel was born in Munster, Westfalia, Germany in 1936 to Danish parents. She graduated from the Royal Conservatory of Music, Copenhagen, with diplomas in piano, harpsichord and organ. Further studies in harpsichord in Paris and Basel, organ studies in Innsbruck and Muri. During the period 1968-1974 she was a teacher of the harpsichord at the Conservatory in Copenhagen; and from 1975 organist at Slangerup Church, the old church of the famous Danish poet and bishop Thomas Kingo, a contemporary of Buxtehude.

The sonata concertata form is perfectly illustrated in these trios by Dietrich Buxtehude which, according to Peter Wollny constitute ‘a landmark in the history of the sonata’. They provide a better understanding of a composer who has owed his fame chiefly associated to his cantatas and organ works, and to the admiration of the young Johann Sebastian Bach, who walked 400 kilometres to hear him play. After recording Buxtehude’s first set of chamber sonatas (ALPHA367), the musicians of Arcangelo (Sophie Gent, Jonathan Manson, Thomas Dunford and Jonathan Cohen) now revive the pieces from the second collection, published in 1696. It shows the multiple European influences (Baltic, Italian, German, French) that flourished in Lübeck, the north German city where Buxtehude worked as organist of the Marienkirche, but also in Hamburg, where the music was type set.