Telemann: Luther Cantatas
CPO

Telemann: Luther Cantatas

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Details

Composer
TELEMANN, GEORG PHILIPP
Artist
Schwarz, Hunger, Saechsisches Barockorchester, Bach Consort Leipzig, Krumbiegel, Kahle, Thornhill
Format
CD
Discs
1
Label
CPO
Released
Jan 28, 2014
Catalog #
777753-2
UPC
761203775323

About



TELEMANN Herr, wir liegen für dir mit unserm Gebet, TWV 1: 781. Es wollt uns Gott genädig sein, TWV 1:544. Es spricht der Unweisen Mund, TWV 1:533a. So ziehet nun an, TWV 1:1390. Wertes Zion, sei getrost, TWV 1: 1606 • Gotthold Schwarz, cond; Siri Karoline Thornhill (sop); Stefan Kahle (ct); Susanne Krumbiegel (alt); Tobias Hunger (ten); Gotthold Schwarz (bs); Bach Consort Leipzig; Sächsisches Barock O (period instruments) • CPO 777 7532 (70:36 Text and Translation)


It is no surprise that Telemann, along with Johann Sebastian Bach and Christoph Graupner, can be considered the main composers of the Lutheran cantata during the first half of the 18th century. After all, the Harmonisches Gottesdienst was meant to provide first-rate but easily performable cantatas in cyclic form for the year for places that were missing larger vocal and instrumental forces, and this published set is only a small tithe of the works that he was to write for the church. Thus, calling this set of five works Luther Cantatas , as the title of the disc has it, rather begs the question of redundancy. Nevertheless, when three texts of that number are by Erdmann Neumeister, the main promoter of the genre, such a rubric should be accepted.


These works are all outgrowths of the Magdeburg Telemann Festival, which annually seems to unearth and perform an almost inexhaustible supply of the composer’s music, and the 21st season was devoted to the theme of his connection with Luther. As was usual with Telemann, the structure of these cantatas varies considerably. The first, Herr, wir liegen für dir , is conventional, with pairs of arias and recitatives bookended by the choral “Dictum” and a final chorale. In the second, the usual recitative is omitted altogether, and it is prefaced by a nicely suspensive sinfonia, while in the third Telemann dispenses with the arias, allowing the threefold choral repetitions (two chorales and a final chorus) to be separated by brief recitatives, the second of which does have a brief devolution into a duet Dictum at the end. The movements can be rather conventional, such as his square setting of A mighty fortress in the final cantata Wertes Zion , or the other chorale tunes. But he also inserts moments of harmonic and melodic boldness, such as the tortuous melismas of the aria “Weg, ihr Sünden” in the first cantata, which get spun out by the bass as if to underscore the text “kränkt mich nicht” (do not constrict or grieve me). The second cantata even ends with a gnarly contrapuntal “Amen” fugue that seems startling, given the almost homophonic nature of the preceding chorales. Telemann is also quite inventive in terms of his use of instrumentation. In the first aria of the first cantata, “Was ich an Gerechtigkeit,” the two flutes (traversos) weave a gentle crystalline minuet around a flowing soprano line that is like a clear brook. In the first duet of the second cantata, Es wollt uns Gott , the oboes are wonderfully throaty, with their darker tone colors emphasizing some curious harmonic inflections that support the parallel thirds of the solo voices. In the last cantata, Telemann uses his high trumpets both as soaring clarion calls and as fanfares. In the chorus, “Seid böse, ihr Völker,” the admonitions of the voices are punctuated by a militaristic brass line, which is suddenly interrupted by plaintive minor-key insertions that provide abrupt and effective dramatic contrast.


In short, these are all excellent examples of the Lutheran church cantata of the time, equal to the same sort of works that were being turned out by Bach over in Leipzig. Conductor Gotthold Schwarz keeps the ensemble clean and crisp, with a nice variety of tempos that emphasize Telemann’s contrasts. He also functions as bass soloist, with a light tone that handles the often twisting lines well. Soprano Siri Thornhill has a bright voice that can sound, as in the aria “Was ich an Gerechtigkeit,” innocent and reticent, just what the Affekt requires. Countertenor Stefan Kahle and alto Susanne Krumbiegel are flexible, as is the precise tone of tenor Tobias Hunger. In short, not only are these fine examples of Telemann’s style in cantata writing, the performances support and present them in a way that promotes their compositional features. My only quibble is that I seem to hear a pair of horns in the background of the straightforward chorale “Ein feste Burg,” which are not mentioned in the list of personnel. That does provide a nice support for the voices, but they should have been mentioned. Other than that, this is a disc that Telemann collectors will want. Recommended.


FANFARE: Bertil van Boer

Tracklist 29 tracks

  1. 1 Dictum: Herr, wir liegen fur dir mit unserm Gebet (All) 02:06
    Track
    1
    Title
    Dictum: Herr, wir liegen fur dir mit unserm Gebet (All)
    Duration
    02:06
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill, Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel, Tobias Hunger, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  2. 2 Recitative: Und wenn Gleich Meiner Augen Bach (Bass) 01:22
    Track
    2
    Title
    Recitative: Und wenn Gleich Meiner Augen Bach (Bass)
    Duration
    01:22
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  3. 3 Aria: Was ich an Gerechtigkeit vor mich selbst besitze (Soprano) 02:19
    Track
    3
    Title
    Aria: Was ich an Gerechtigkeit vor mich selbst besitze (Soprano)
    Duration
    02:19
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  4. 4 Recitative: Ei, darum flieh ich hin zu dir (Alto) 01:15
    Track
    4
    Title
    Recitative: Ei, darum flieh ich hin zu dir (Alto)
    Duration
    01:15
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  5. 5 Aria: Weg, ihr sunden, krankt mich nicht (Bass) 02:45
    Track
    5
    Title
    Aria: Weg, ihr sunden, krankt mich nicht (Bass)
    Duration
    02:45
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  6. 6 Mitten in der Hollenangst (Chorus) 01:42
    Track
    6
    Title
    Mitten in der Hollenangst (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:42
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  7. 7 Sinfonie 03:47
    Track
    7
    Title
    Sinfonie
    Duration
    03:47
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  8. 8 Es wollt uns Gott gnadig Sein (Chorus) 01:09
    Track
    8
    Title
    Es wollt uns Gott gnadig Sein (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:09
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  9. 9 Duet: Es wollt uns Gott gnadig Sein (Soprano, Bass) 03:06
    Track
    9
    Title
    Duet: Es wollt uns Gott gnadig Sein (Soprano, Bass)
    Duration
    03:06
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  10. 10 So danken, Gott, Und loben dich (Chorus) 01:03
    Track
    10
    Title
    So danken, Gott, Und loben dich (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:03
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  11. 11 Duet: So danken, Gott, und loben dich (Alto, Tenor) 04:55
    Track
    11
    Title
    Duet: So danken, Gott, und loben dich (Alto, Tenor)
    Duration
    04:55
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel, Tobias Hunger
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  12. 12 Es danke Gott, und loben dich (Chorus) 01:15
    Track
    12
    Title
    Es danke Gott, und loben dich (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:15
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  13. 13 Amen (Chorus) 01:53
    Track
    13
    Title
    Amen (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:53
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  14. 14 Es spricht der unweisen Mund wohl (Chorus) 00:58
    Track
    14
    Title
    Es spricht der unweisen Mund wohl (Chorus)
    Duration
    00:58
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  15. 15 Recitative: Das ist die allgemeine Klage (Alto) 01:47
    Track
    15
    Title
    Recitative: Das ist die allgemeine Klage (Alto)
    Duration
    01:47
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  16. 16 Willt du nun fein gut Christe sein (Chorus) 01:04
    Track
    16
    Title
    Willt du nun fein gut Christe sein (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:04
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  17. 17 Recitative and Dictum: Was ist doch das vor eine Gnaden-Krone (Tenor, Bass) 02:54
    Track
    17
    Title
    Recitative and Dictum: Was ist doch das vor eine Gnaden-Krone (Tenor, Bass)
    Duration
    02:54
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Tobias Hunger, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  18. 18 Mein Wille sich stets verpflichten (Chorus) 02:00
    Track
    18
    Title
    Mein Wille sich stets verpflichten (Chorus)
    Duration
    02:00
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  19. 19 So ziehet nun an als die Auserwahlten Gottes (All) 03:13
    Track
    19
    Title
    So ziehet nun an als die Auserwahlten Gottes (All)
    Duration
    03:13
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill, Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel, Tobias Hunger, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  20. 20 Aria: Wie selig ist der Christen Leben (Soprano) 04:17
    Track
    20
    Title
    Aria: Wie selig ist der Christen Leben (Soprano)
    Duration
    04:17
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  21. 21 Recitative: Ach? wenn doch manche dies bedachten (Tenor) 01:13
    Track
    21
    Title
    Recitative: Ach? wenn doch manche dies bedachten (Tenor)
    Duration
    01:13
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Tobias Hunger
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  22. 22 Aria: Jesu, gib mir deinen Geist (Bass) 04:17
    Track
    22
    Title
    Aria: Jesu, gib mir deinen Geist (Bass)
    Duration
    04:17
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  23. 23 All unsre Schuld vergib uns Herr (Chorus) 00:55
    Track
    23
    Title
    All unsre Schuld vergib uns Herr (Chorus)
    Duration
    00:55
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  24. 24 Duet: Wertes Zion, sei getrost (Sooprano, Bass) 05:00
    Track
    24
    Title
    Duet: Wertes Zion, sei getrost (Sooprano, Bass)
    Duration
    05:00
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  25. 25 Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott (Chorus) 01:05
    Track
    25
    Title
    Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott (Chorus)
    Duration
    01:05
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  26. 26 Recitative: Wie's Jesu ging, so ging es seiner Kirche Noch (Tenor) 02:51
    Track
    26
    Title
    Recitative: Wie's Jesu ging, so ging es seiner Kirche Noch (Tenor)
    Duration
    02:51
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Tobias Hunger
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  27. 27 Dictum Seid bose, ihr Volker (All) 05:07
    Track
    27
    Title
    Dictum Seid bose, ihr Volker (All)
    Duration
    05:07
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Siri Karoline Thornhill, Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel, Tobias Hunger, Gotthold Schwarz
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  28. 28 Aria: Zion Wird Nicht Untergehen (Alto, Tenor) 02:28
    Track
    28
    Title
    Aria: Zion Wird Nicht Untergehen (Alto, Tenor)
    Duration
    02:28
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Performer
    Stefan Kahle, Susanne Krumbiegel, Tobias Hunger
    Ensemble
    Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz
  29. 29 Hallelujah! (Chorus) 02:38
    Track
    29
    Title
    Hallelujah! (Chorus)
    Duration
    02:38
    Composer
    Georg Philipp Telemann
    Ensemble
    Leipzig Bach Consort, Saxon Baroque Orchestra
    Conductor
    Gotthold Schwarz