In his will, Christoph Graupner (1683-1760) decreed that every single one of his compositions should be destroyed after his death. It is quite unimaginable that...

In his will, Christoph Graupner (1683-1760) decreed that every single one of his compositions should be destroyed after his death. It is quite unimaginable that the composer’s last will should have been carried out! Fortunately, posterity preserved the musical memorial, and so today we find his musical legacy in the library of the ‘Darmstädter Hofkapelle’. To date, very little of Graupner’s extensive vocal oeuvre has been recorded, and thus the Anton-Webern-Chor Freiburg together with the Ensemble Concerto Grosso conducted by Hans Michael Beuerle present imaginative baroque vocal music recorded for the first time. A program of four passion cantatas was selected from the enormous body of Graupner cantatas – altogether 1414 sacred cantatas grouped in 46 annual cantata volumes are extant!