KREUTZER: Singphoniker

Die Singphoniker

CPO 999693

The Swabian composer Conradin Kreutzer (1780-1849) is a typical one-work composer. His opera "Das Nachtlager von Granada" is probably the only thing associated with his name today. Yet he was an incredibly prolific composer: the princely Württemberg court conductor wrote more than 50 operas, almost 200 solo songs, various church music works, piano and chamber music, making him extremely popular in his day. After all, he represented the spirit of his era in an almost ideal way: the spirit of the Biedermeier period. It is therefore no coincidence that he cultivated one genre in particular: the male vocal quartet.

Songs for this instrumentation were a specialty of the early 19th century, as they perfectly fulfilled the function of domestic music in convivial male gatherings. The sound of the male voices corresponded to the soft sound ideal of the time, which was expressed in the orchestra by clarinets and horns. The Singphoniker have selected twenty-four compositions from Kreutzer's 163 works, most of which are appearing on CD for the first time. They demonstrate great mastery of compositional technique and an unerring feeling for an almost sensual melody that can still enchant today.

CD x 1

CPO

12/11/2004

761203969326