Fils - Symphonies

Gaigg, Michi, L’Orfeo Barockorchester

CPO 999778

Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel (1690–1749) was undisputed in his importance among his contemporaries. As a highly esteemed composer, he is mentioned on an equal footing with Bach, Telemann, and Handel. The tide has turned: Today, his name is found neither in concert programs nor in CD catalogs. Did his contemporaries lack sufficient discernment? On the contrary!

Our world premiere recording of one of the most representative works by the court Kapellmeister in Gotha—the Brockes Passion "The Martyred and Dying Jesus for the Sinners of the World" from 1725—proves just how right they were. This is no minor Baroque master at work: The emotional power of this music and Stölzel's personal compositional profile need not shy away from comparison with any of the aforementioned contemporaries. Not even Bach set the Passion story to music with such breathtaking intensity.

"I consider him the best symphonist who ever lived." "Splendor, fullness of tone, a mighty, all-shattering roar and rage of the harmonic flood; novelty in the ideas and turns of phrase... have not been able to rob him of universal admiration to this day." Christian Friedrich Schubart praised the symphonies of Anton Fils (1733–1760) in such effusive terms. Although Fils is considered one of the most important symphonists of the Mannheim School, only a few details of his biography are known for certain. His early death also contributed to the legend surrounding the composer. All that is certain is that he was employed as a cellist in the Mannheim court orchestra and thus not actually obligated to compose. Despite this, the number of works attributed to him is surprisingly large. Michi Gaigg and her L'Orfeo Baroque Orchestra have now recorded five of these magnificent symphonies for us: The enthusiasm of his contemporaries for this young, brilliant firebrand becomes perfectly understandable in these captivating interpretations.

Works:

•Fils: Symphony in C major
•Fils: Symphony in E flat major
•Fils: Symphony in G Minor, Op. 2 No. 2
•Fils: Symphony in D Major, Op. 2 No. 5
•Fils: Symphony in A Major (Sinfonie periodique No. 2)

CD x 1

CPO

6/6/02

761203977826