KEISER Dialogus von der Geburt Christi. GRAUPNER Magnificat • Jürgen Ochs (ten, cond); Rastatter Hofkapelle (period instruments) • CARUS 83.417 (45:00 Text and Translation)


The appearance of a new recording of the works of Reinhard Keiser is for me a cause of rejoicing. The high quality of the operas that have been recorded gives testimony of a composer near the top rank of Baroque composers. This is my first encounter with one of Keiser’s religious works, and the Dialogus confirms the high opinion I hold of his ability.


Dialogus , written for performance in a Hamburg concert hall in 1707, survives only in a revised version, including the addition of chorales, and probably dates from Keiser’s period as Cathedral choirmaster. While the work is recognizably in the tradition of the north German cantata, it is leavened with the melodic and dramatic gifts of one of the Baroque era’s best opera composers. An additional feature typical of Keiser’s work is the varied instrumentation; none of the solo movements, whether aria, duet, or trio, have the same instrumentation.


The pairing of Keiser with Graupner on this disc is appropriate; they both wrote for the Hamburg opera in the first decade of the 18th century, and Graupner contributed several arias to one of Keiser’s greatest operatic successes, Der Carneval von Venedig . Graupner’s only Magnificat may have been written in support of an application for the position of Thomaskantor in Leipzig. The work is very appealing, vocally and instrumentally. Although Graupner’s work found favor in Leipzig, his Darmstadt employer refused to release him to accept the Leipzig appointment.


Rastatter Hofkapelle is, at least on this recording, a group of eight vocalists and 13 instrumentalists. Jürgen Ochs, the conductor, also serves as tenor soloist and chorister. The performances are generally accomplished, especially from the instrumentalists and the vocalists singing in concert. In their solo turns, however, they are somewhat disappointing. The solo music obviously taxes their abilities; they are able to get through their solo assignments, but we are aware that more-accomplished singers could have made more of this music. I do not want to put anyone off of purchasing this recording by suggesting that the solo singing is awful; it certainly isn’t that. It simply could have been better with more-accomplished vocalists.


Carus claims that both of these works are recording premieres, and I see no reason to dispute this claim. The short length of the program is a disappointment. There was plenty of room for another Keiser or Graupner work. Both of these works are well worth getting to know, and the recording has provided me with a great deal of pleasure.


FANFARE: Ron Salemi

Fireflight Mimmi Fulmer (soprano voice), Elizabeth Falconer (koto, bass koto), Dane Richeson (percussion), Les Thimmig (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet), Michael Kocour (piano) 'Taking of the World by Sturm' 'Bassist-composer Hans Sturm stirs up a torrent of creative virtuosity in his recent Innova release Fireflight: Sun Suite. The jazz/new music crossover album is permeated by the haunting sounds of Elizabeth Falconer's traditional and progressive koto playing, which is well nigh in the same league as Miya Masaoka's (in one stretch Falconer sounds remarkably like an oud). Mimmi Fulmer is the glowing and smoky soprano, and she sings wonderfully in consort with the innovative drummer Dane Richeson, who is comfortable with all manner of percussion East and West.' Mark Alburger, Journal of 21st Century Music 'At one moment it sounds like ancient tribal ritual music, and the next, it evokes scenes of natural phenomena - awe inspiring vistas and picturesque landscapes. This group paints pictures with sound that challenge the imagination and mind of the listener... a feast of musical textures and moods, and an imaginative approach to ensemble playing' Todd Coolman, Bass World I have frequently been inspired by a moving sunrise or sunset and was struck by the thought of what it might feel like to not just witness an event of such great beauty, but to be a physical part of it - as if one could become part of the air and light. This thought inspired a series of poems and stories exploring the idea of becoming a disembodied part of the atmosphere, somehow one with the day. These explorations raised the thought of how magical the various parts of the day must have been to early human observers left unburdened by scientific explanations, the incandescent light bulb, and climate controlled environments. Words suggested sounds and ultimately led to the creation of the Sun Suite depicting a single solar cycle. The Sun Suite is comprised of four sections; Sunrise, Daylight, Sunset, and Night which are in turn divided into a total of eight movements. The Sun Suite begins with an Invocation, starting softly with Tibetan Prayer Bowls and moving into a percussion and double bass improvisation that sets the mood for the composition. Invocation is followed by Habanero Sunrise. The Sunrise movement has a Latin American feel and likens the beginning of a hot day to sensuous images of the Sun both as a woman and as hot peppers. Sunrise segues into Fireflight, a movement featuring the bass koto, double bass and voice in a layered melody. The Fireflight movement attempts to impart sonic images of birds awakening in the early morning. Fireflight in turn segues into Daylight and Ellipse. These two short movements were written as duets for soprano and double bass. Sunset follows Ellipse and begins with an extended introduction featuring the Brazilian berimbau, then adding the double bass and finally the koto. This movement features four themes which are tossed about between the instruments and the voice in an effort to give the impression of the complex colorful air found at sunset. Starshower is an instrumental movement and features the clay udu drum along with koto and double bass. The final movement of the Sun Suite is the Night parable, a whimsical children's story about the moon which ends quite softly with the opening Latin vamp from Sunrise, completing the sun's cycle. If the Sun Suite is to be considered ethnic world music, then Smoke and Fire must be considered jazz inspired compositions. Written for soprano Mimmi Fulmer during the summer of 1996