Indeed, Vienna is so rich in composers [...], that it is but just to allow it to be, among German cities, the imperial seat of music, as well as of power. Sir Charles Burney, the famous observer of European music, was quite correct. This city on the Danube was bubbling over with talents and masters who all made their livelihood there. This included Johann Baptist Wanhal, one of the innumerable Bohemians that tried their luck in the shadow of the court palace. He contributed many beautiful pieces to his preferred medium of instrumental music. The small selection of the present production alone well demonstrates that Wanhal was able to hold his own in the symphonic genre next to Joseph Haydn, who was seven years his senior. Subtle orchestral colours, a fine sense for dramatic events, especially in the minor keys, and striking melodies are characteristic of the creations that were enjoyed not only in the old imperial city.

In his musical travelogue from 1773, the English musician and musicologist Charles Burney described Bohemia as the "conservatory of Europe". The country, now part of the Czech Republic, was then part of the Austrian Empire and from here came many outstanding composers who, if they did not stay in the country, worked not only in Vienna and other Austrian cultural centers, but also at the courts of all Europe and in the German, Italian and French metropolises. The word "Bohemian" encompasses the Czech and German language areas of the Czech lands. No wonder that Czech and Bohemian music has fascinated many musicians and musicologists for three centuries.

This series of ‘Sturm und Drang’ recordings incorporates iconic compositions by Mozart, Gluck and, above all, Joseph Haydn, but it also includes largely forgotten or neglected works by less familiar names. All of the music featured on this second recording in the series was composed between 1765 and 1770, with three turbulent minor-key symphonies alternating with sacred and operatic arias. This is the second of a seven-volume series by the Mozartists and Ian Page exploring the ‘Sturm und Drang’ movement, which swept through all art forms in the between the early 1760s and 1780s. Its general objectives were to frighten and perturb through the use of a wildly subjective and emotional means of expression, invoking ground-breaking extremes of passion and sentimentality.

One of the leading composers of the Classical and early Romantic eras, Johann Baptist Vaňhal played a vital role in the development of Viennese music between 1750 and 1780. He composed prolifically in many genres, including a large number of quartets, symphonies, sacred works, vocal and instrumental works, including around 150 piano sonatas and sonatinas. Vaňhal was at his most inspirational and improvisational in his keyboard Capriccios composed in the 1780s, which are some of the most creative examples of the Viennese Classical style, not least in their almost symphonic force.

One may rightly claim that Johann Baptist Vanhal (1739-1813), who traced his roots to Bohemia, was one of the most productive composers of the 18th c. + He wrote a total of 1,377 (!) works; sixty string quartets having appeared in print through to 1787, with thirty-six others in manuscript or documented in catalogue entries. + Quantity aside, Vanhal quite early gained fame with the quality of his works. + For CPO, the Lotus String Quartet, which gained notice with its triumph at the Int’l Chamber Music Competition in Osaka, Japan in 1994, interprets a selection of these quartets.

Vanhal numbers among the most productive composers of the 18th century. Among other works, 77 symphonies and 60 solo concertos by him are documented. Burney remarked when the composer was only age 33 that he would not hesitate to name Vanhal’s symphonies among the most complete and perfect compositions, for many instruments, which the art of music can boast. This album contains world premiere recordings of 3 genuinely gripping works.