‘It was altogether shocking how absolutely wonderful his voice sounded … so unique, so individual, so clear and authentic – a voice that could be compared to no other.’ Rolando Villazón ‘What he did – there was no one who came close to him. I don’t think he will ever be surpassed.’ Nicolai Gedda ‘The […]

The greatest opera singers of this century perform arias from six of the finest Mozart operas

One of the peaks of the choral repertoire, the ‘St. Matthew Passion’ remains one of Bach’s most recorded (and popular) works. This recording is special, not only for its simplicity and reverential glow but also because the international cast of soloists (German, Dutch, English), all at the peak of their careers, seem so inspired and so […]

Although Bach wrote four (or five) settings of the Passions only two have survived; the St. Matthew Passion (Matthäus-Passion) and the St John Passion. The St. Matthew Passion was probably first performed on Good Friday (11 April) 1727 in the Thomaskirche in Leipzig, where Bach was the Kantor of the School and Directoris Chori musici […]

In 1957, Fritz Wunderlich together with colleagues Friederike Sailer, Margarete Bence and August Messthaler, set down complete versions of three Bach choral works – the Magnificat, the Cantata BWV 31 and the Easter Oratorio. They were recorded for Philips in France. Both, the oratorio and the cantata Der Himmel lacht, Die Erde jubilieret (‘The heavens […]