Hans Leo Hassler was a famous man, and it was not without reason that crowned heads and wealthy merchants, including the legendary Fugger family, the Prince Elector of Saxony and the Duke of Braunschweig, competed to obtain his services.

On his new CD, Franz Raml has brought together some completely unknown organ works by Hassler. The result is a fascinating new perspective on this great Renaissance master, and the wonderful instruments in St Stephen’s Church in Tangermünde and the Schlägl Premonstratensian Abbey contribute their part to it.

The colourful Renaissance organs lend a very special stamp to what are often highly virtuosic pieces. Especially the toccatas, impressively demonstrating Hassler’s enormous instrumental capabilities, profit from the congenial registrations, and the strict polyphonic canzonas and ricercars take on an exemplary transparency.

The famous vocal composer is also revealed in Hassler’s organ works. From his successful Lustgarten neuer teutscher Gesänge, even today a popular anthology, he arranged numerous compositions for keyboard instruments. He was very much at the height of his times in these so-called intabulations and, in a clever business move, used them to promote the printed editions of his song compositions. No wonder, then, that he also came to the attention of Emperor Rudolf II, who elevated the superb artist to the nobility when he was thirty-one years old.

Franz Raml has a very special relationship with Hans Leo Hassler. As the founder and director of the Hassler Consort he has scored great successes over the decades with performances of vocal music of the Renaissance and Early Baroque. An organist, harpsichordist and fortepianist with an impressive discography to his credit, Raml is very familiar with the historical instrumentarium. High time for a musical homage to the man who gave his name to the Hassler Consort!